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THE BOOR OF
ALFALFA

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It is the pleasure of the publishers to present to those who are interested in
alfalfa, the man who declined an appointment as United States Senator, that
he might continue to direct the affairs of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture
in general and of farmers in particular, — Orange Judd Company.

The Book of Alfalfa '

HISTORY, CULTIVATION AND MERITS.

ITS USES AS A FORAGE

AND FERTILIZER.

* * * * Spanish clover, such as has
Usurped the Occident and dwells
On Sacramento's sundown hills.
And all the verdant valley fills
With fragrance sweet and delicate
As wooing breath of woman is.

— Joaguin Miller.

By F. D. GOBURN

Secretary Kansas Department of Agriculture.

Illustrated

1912

Obangk JuDii Company
New York

New Revised Edition Copyrighted 1907 by
Orange Judd Company

' 5b SO

AH Bights Reserved

Printed in the U. S. A.

THERE ARE SOME SILENT SUBSOILERS THAT
DO THEIR WORK WITH EASE, AND IN THEIR
WAY, MORE EFFECTUALLY THAN ANY TEAM
OR PLOW EVER HITCHED. THE CLOVER PLANT
IS RIGHTEOUSLY FAMED AS ONE OF THESE,
BUT ALFALFA IS ITS SUPERIOR. ITS ROOTS
WORK SUNDAY AS WELL IAS SATURDAY,
NIGHT AND DAY; THEY STRIKE 5, 10, 15 OR
20 FEET DEEP, MAKING INNUMERABLE PER-
FORATIONS, WHILE STORING UP NITROGEN,
AND WHEN THESE ROOTS DECAY THEY LEAVE
NOT ONLY A GENEROUS SUPPLY OF FERTILITY
FOR ANY DESIRED CROP, BUT MILLIONS OF
OPENINGS INTO WHICH THE AIR AND RAIN
OF HEAVEN FIND THEIR WAY, AND HELP TO
CONSTITUTE AN UNFAILING RESERVOIR OF
WEALTH, UPON WHICH THE HUSBANDMAN
CAN DRAW WITH LITTLE FEAR OF PROTEST
OR OVERDRAFTS.

" Its long, branching roots penetrate far down, push and
crowd the earth this way and that, and thus constitute a
gigantic subsoiler. These become an immense magazine of
fertility. As soon as cut, they begin to decay and liberate
the vast reservoir of fertilizing matter below the plow, to
be drawn upon by other crops for years to come "

The Author's Foreword

This volume, however strong its statements in favor
of alfalfa may appear to those unacquainted with that
plant's productivity and beneficence, is by no means pre-
sented as an argument that everyone should raise alfalfa.
It is intended rather as a conservative setting forth of
what others have found alfalfa to be and do under wide
variations of soil, climate, condition and locality; of its
characteristics and uses; the most approved methods of
its raising and utilization, and the estimates of it by
those who have known it most intimately and longest
as a farm forage crop and a restorer and renovator of
the soil.

The author believes in alfalfa; he believes in it for the
big farmer as a profit-bringer in the form of hay, or
condensed into beef, pork, mutton, or products of the
cow ; but he has a still more abiding faith in it as a main-
stay of the small farmer; for feed for all his live stock
and for maintaining the fertility of the soil.

To avoid the appearance of both special pleading and
exaggeration the statements have been guarded, and
many of a laudatory nature, which fully authenticated
facts seemed to justify, have been omitted, as neither the
author nor the publishers have desire or willingness to
extol unduly a commodity so little needing it as that of
which the volume treats. Alfalfa's strongest commen-
dations are invariably from those who know it best ; none
are incredulous who know it well, and none have grown
it but wished their acreage increased.

F. D. COBURN.

Topeka, Kansas.
1906

Introductory

Former Governor W. D. Hoard, of Wisconsin

Editor Hoard's Bairyman

I am exceedingly gratified by the preparation and
publication of a new and larger work devoted to the sub-
ject of Alfalfa The earlier effort by Mr. Coburn upon
the same subject was in many respects a classic, and I
am sure farmers everywhere will now hail with joy the
advent of a kindred work by him, still more complete.

It is strange, this late awakening all over the Union
and in Canada to the feeding value and possibilities of
this marvelous plant. Again, it is wonderful to me that
within a few years farmers everywhere are being com-
pelled to revise their judgment as to their chances of
success with it. A large correspondence on this subject
comes to me from every state in the Union and the prov-
inces of Canada, and success is being had in the growing
of alfalfa where not more than three years ago it was
deemed impossible to make it live. Of course the ques-
tion of growing alfalfa contains a thousand or more
chances for good or poor judgment. Men who are not
too conceited, too ignorant or too stubborn to learn by
reading other men's experience will go ahead rapidly
and soon make a success of it.

I believe this alfalfa movement is the most important
agricultural event of the century. For the production ot

beef, mutton and milk, the combination of corn ensilage
and rightly cured alfalfa hay, furnishes almost a perfect
ration, requiring but a small addition of grain feed. Both
of these can be cheaply and easily produced on nearly
every farm in the land. In my herd of nearly fifty reg-
istered and grade Guernsey cows these feeds constitute
the sheet anchor of my dairy work.

No one more literally abets the growth of two blades
of grass where one grew before than he who effectively
urges the cultivation of alfalfa upon those who are
strangers to it, and no one is more truly working for the
benefit of agriculture, the basis of all prosperity, than he
who proclaims its excellence as the foremo^c forage.

Hoard's Dairyman will do al! in its power to enhance
the circulation and reading of such a book as Mr. Coburn
has made.

W. D. HOARD.

Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin.
1906

Publisher's Announcement

All the plates of the "Book of Alfalfa" were de-
stroyed in the disastrous fire that consumed our mechan-
ical department January 28, 1907. We have taken
advantage of this emergency and present the present
volume in a new and revised edition, with the addi-
tional material furnished by the author.

ORANGE JUDD COMPANY.

Tabic of Contents

The Author's Foreword ....

Introductory .....

CHAPTER I

History, Description, Varieties and Habits .

CHAPTER n

tJniversality of Alfalfa ....

. 13

CHAPTER HI

Yields, and Comparisons with other Crops .

CHAPTER IV

Seed and Seed Selection . . . :.

... 2y

CHAPTER V

Soil and Seeding . . . . i.i

:. 44

CHAPTER VI

Cultivation ..... t.,

. 67

CHAPTER Vn

Harvesting ...,..,

. 79

CHAPTER Vni

Storing ......

. 93

CHAPTER IX

Pasturing and Soiling .....

. 107

CHAPTER X

Alfalfa as a Feed Stuff ....

. 125

CHAPTER XI

Alfalfa in Beef-Making ....

. 138

CHAPTER XII

Alfalfa and the Dairy ....

. 143

CHAPTER XIII

Alfalfa for Swine .....

Page

CHAPTER XIV

Alfalfa for Horses and Mules .

. 165

CHAPTER XV

Alfalfa and Sheep Raising

. 171

CHAPTER XVI

Alfalfa and Bees

. 175

CHAPTER XVII

Alfalfa and Poultry ....

. 180

CHAPTER XVIII

Alfalfa Food Preparations

. 182

CHAPTER XIX

Alfalfa for Town and City

. 187

CHAPTER XX

Alfalfa in Crop Rotation

. 189

CHAPTER XXI

Nitro-Culture .....

. 197

CHAPTER XXII

Alfalfa as a Commercial Factor

204

CHAPTER XXIII

The Enemies of Alfalfa ....

. 206

CHAPTER XXIV

Difficulties and Discouragements

. 220

CHAPTER XXV

Miscellaneous .....

. 223

CHAPTER XXVI

Alfalfa in Different States

. 231

List of Illustrations

Page

F. D. Coburn Frontispiece

A Typical Alfalfa Plant i

Typical Stems and Foliage of the Alfalfa Plant i

An Eight-year-old Alfalfa Plant 6

Crown of Plant Shown in the Preceding Illus-
tration 6

Alfalfa Blossoms Enlarged 7

Intergrading Types of Seed Between Alfalfa and

Sweet Clover 12

Seeds of the Weed Known as Buck-horn . . 13
Alfalfa Seeds Magnified Five Diameters ... 13
Sweet Clover— Alfalfa— Yellow Trefoil ... 26
Three Distinctive Types of Alfalfa Seed Magni-
fied Twelve Times 27

Yellow Trefoil Pods 32

Alfalfa Seed Pods 32

Sweet Clover Pods 33

Bur Clover Seed Pods 33

Three General Types of Alfalfa Seed .... 44

Dodder Seed Magnified 45

Alfalfa Seed Magnified 45

Dodder Plant on an Alfalfa Stem 46

Dodder (Cuscuta arvensis) 47

Alfalfa and Dodder Seed (Actual Size) ... 47

Dodder (Cuscuta epithymum) 47

X LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Page

Bur Clover Pod 66

Yellow Trefoil Seed Pod 66

Alfalfa Seed Pod 67

Spotted Clover Pod 67

Gathering Alfalfa Hay into Windrows with a

Side-delivery Horserake 78

Cutting a Fine Field of Alfalfa 79

Gathering an Alfalfa Crop in Page County, Iowa 92
Alfalfa Harvesting Scene in Yellowstone County,

Montana 92

Mast and Boom Stacker, with Six-tined Jackson

Fork 93

A Derrick Stacker 93

Lattice Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Cattle . . 106

Box Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Sheep . . . 106

Lattice Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Sheep . . 107

Box Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Cattle . . . 107

Alfalfa Field in Central New York . . . . 124
Fourth Cutting of Alfalfa in Shawnee County,

Kansas 124

A Second Cutting of Alfalfa (July 28) in Shaw-
nee County, Eastern Kansas . . . . 125
Kansas Farmer Viewing One of His Alfaifa Fields 138

Harvesting Alfalfa in Ohio 139

Showing Advantage of Early Fall Sowing . . 154

Five-year-old Alfalfa 155

Alfalfa One Year Old, Showing Effects of Inoc-
ulation 170

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi

Page

A Good Type of a Four-year-old Alfalfa Plant . 171
x\lfalfa Plant and Roots Showing Bacteria Nod-
ules ig6

Tubercles on Clover Roots 197

Peculiar Nodules in Groups on Small Rootlets 206

Alfalfa Roots Showing Normal Nodules . . . 207

And There's Still ]\Iore to Follow 220

Dead Prairie Dogs 221

Pot Culture Experiments at University of Illinois 230

Six Months' Growth of Alfalfa Foliage . . . 231

Cutting Alfalfa in Southern California . . . 256

Baling Alfalfa in Southern Oklahoma . . . 256

A 400-ton Rick of Alfalfa 257

A Cable Derrick, Provided with a Grapple Fork 257

Sweet Clover {McliloHis alba) 288

Yellow Trefoil (Mcdicago liipulina) .... 289

A Typical Alfalfa Plant

as it appears before the blossoms are developed. From ^lichigan Experiment
Station Bulletin No. 225

Typical Stems and Foliage of the Alfalfa Plant

Avhen beginning to blossom the most suital)le for hay. Grown in Shawnee

County, Kansas, on unirrigated upland prairie with a "gumbo" or

hardpan subsoil. From the season's third cutting, August 20;

height 24 and 26 inches

ALFALFA

(Medicago satwa^ Linn.)
CHAPTER L

History, Description, Varieties and Habits

HAS ALWAYS BEEN KNOWN

There appears no record of a time when alfalfa was
not in some portions of the world esteemed one of Na-
ture's most generous benefactions to husbandry and an
important feature of a profitable agriculture. Its begin-
ning seems to have been contemporary with that of man,
and, as with man, its first habitat was central Asia, where
the progenitors of our race knew its capabilities in sus-
taining all herbivorous animal life, and where, possibly,
it too afforded the herbage which sustained Nebuchad-
nezzar in his humiliating exile, and eventually restored
him to sanity and manhood.

It was carried by the Persians into Greece with the
invasion by Xerxes in 490 B. C, utilized by the Romans
in their conquest of Greece, and carried to Rome in 146
B. C. Pliny and other writers praise it as a forage plant
and it has been in cultivation in parts of Italy continu-
ously from its introduction. Some writers are disposed
to aver that it was brought to Spain and France by the
Roman soldiery under Caesar and early thereafter, but

2 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

more probably it was not introduced into those counties
until several centuries later. It is known to have been
cultivated in Northern Africa about the time it was first
brought to Italy; and the name "alfalfa" being Arabic
the inference might be reasonable that it was introduced
into Spain by the Moors from Northern Africa at the
time of their conquest of Spain about 711 A. D., but this
is of small consequence to the twentieth century. From
Spain it crossed to France, and later to Belgium and
England. It was highly spoken of by an English writer
of the fifteenth century.

A3IEKICA INDEBTED TO SPAIN

But in those ages Europe was not so much interested
in agriculture as in war. Land tenures were not well
fixed and ownerships were uncertain. Spain, however,
was to perform at least two important services for half
the world, if none for herself. She was to reveal to
civilization a new continent, and give to it the most
valuable forage plant ever known. And so, in 15 19,
Cortes, the Spaniard, and his remorseless brigands car-
ried murder, rapine and havoc to Mexico, but gave
alfalfa. Less than a score years later Spain also wrote
in Peru and Chili some of the bloodiest pages of human
history, but left alfalfa there, where it has since luxu-
riantly flourished. If it was brought to the Atlantic
coast of the United States in that century, it was not
adopted by the Indian inhabitants, who were not an agri-
cultural people, nor by the early European settlers.

It was not until about 1853 c>r 1854 that it was intro-
duced into northern California, the legends say from
Chili, but it had been grown by the Spaniards and

HISTORY, DESCRIPTION, VARIETIES AND HABITS 3

Indians in southern California for probably a hundred
years, having had a gradual migration from Mexico.
Strange to relate, while it is even now on the Atlantic
coast discussed as a new plant, there is good evidence
that it has been in cultivation on a small scale in the
Carolinas, New York and Pennsylvania for probably
one hundred and fifty years. Certainly there are small
fields in those states that have been producing for over
sixty years, and there are to be found articles and letters
written far earlier showing that it was then known and
had been proven. One Spurrier, in a book dedicated to
Thomas Jefferson, and written in 1793, spoke highly
of alfalfa, called 'Uucerne;" told how it should be
cultivated, and that three crops of valuable hay could
be cut annually. In the "Transactions of the Society
for the Promotion of Agriculture," published at
Albany in 1801, it was favorably mentioned, and in the
"Farmers' Assistant," printed in Albany in 18 15,
alfalfa was praised and the statement made of its
yielding 6 to 9 tons of hay per acre "under the best
cultivation and plentiful manuring." Yet its cultivation
did not spread. The inertia of farmers, or perhaps their
indifference to new ideas, in the early days must have
been marvelous. According to Spurrier the difficulties
were not considered greater than now ; he said one plant-
ing would survive many years and the yield was three
times as great as that of any other forage plant. The
seed was no doubt introduced there from England or
France; it was probably scarce, and difficult to secure
from growings in this country.

4 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

THE NA3IE AND ITS ORIGIN

The name "Alfalfa" is from an Arabic word meaning
"the best fodder," which honor it can certainly still
claim Many writers have assumed that the name
"Lucerne" which it bears in France and England, was
from the name of the Swiss canton. Lucerne. This is
a mistake as it was not known there until long after it
was cultivated in France and England. The name is
probably from the Spanish word "Userdas" which the
French changed to "La-cuzerdo" and later to "Lu-
zerne," still later to "Lizerne" and then to "Lucerne.'*

Among other names by which alfalfa is known are
the following: Lucerne; French Lucerne; French
Clover, in part; Mexican Clover, in part; Lucerne
Clover; Lucerne Medicago; Alfalfa Clover; Chilian
Clover; Brazilian Clover; Syrian Clover; Sainfoin,
erroneously; Spanish Trefoil; Purple Medick; Manured
Medick; Cultivated Medicago; Medick. Persian, Isfist;
Greek, Medicai; Latin, Medica, Herba Medica; Italian,
Herba Spagna; Spanish, Melga or Meilga, also
(from the Arabic), Alfalfa, Alfasafat; French, La
Lucerne; German, Lucerne, Common Fodder, Snail
Clover, Blue Snail Clover, Branching Clover, Stem
Clover, Monthly Clover, Horned Clover, in part, Peren-
nial Clover, Blue Perennial Clover, Burgundy Clover,
Welsh Clover, Sicilian Clover.

Alfalfa belongs to the botanical family Leguminosae,
or the legumes, of which there are thousands of species,
and is thus related to all clovers, peas, vetches and beans.
Its botanical name is Medicago sativa. There are some
fifty species of the genus Medicago that are known, but

HISTORY, DESCRIPTION, VARIETIES AND HABITS 5

alfalfa and one or two others are all that are of practical
value as fodders. It is a true perennial plant, smooth,
upright, branching, ordinarily growing from one to four
feet high, yet in some instances much higher, owing to
conditions of soil, climate and cultivation. Its leaves
are three parted, each leaflet being broadest about the
middle, rounded in outline and slightly toothed toward
the apex. The purple pea-like flowers instead of being
in a head, as in red clover, are in long, loose clusters or
racemes. These are scattered along the plant's stems
and branches, instead of being especially borne, as in red
clover, on the extremities of the branches. The matured
seed-pods are spirally twisted through two or three com-
plete curves, and each pod contains several seeds. The
seeds are kidney-shaped, and average about one-twelfth
of an inch long by half as thick. They are about one-
half larger than seeds of red clover, and in color are at
their best an olive green or a bright egg-yellow, instead
of a reddish or mustard yellow, or faded brown. The
ends of the seeds are slightly compressed where they are
crowded together in the pod.

Alfalfa is very long-lived; fields in Mexico, it is
claimed, have been continuously productive without re-
planting for over two hundred years, and others in France
are known to have flourished for more than a century.
Its usual life in the United States is probably from ten
to twenty-five years, although there is a field in New
York that has been mown successively for over sixty
years. It is not unlikely that under its normal conditions
and with normal care it would well-nigh be, as it is
called, everlasting.

6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

ITS WONDERFUL. ROOT SYSTEM

In its root growth it is probably the greatest wonder
among plants. While it usually grows no higher than
four or five feet (although it has been known to reach
more than ten feet ; an unirrigated stalk is on exhibition
at the office of the Kansas Board of Agriculture, meas-
uring nearly seven feet) and its normal height is about
three feet, its roots go down ten, twenty, or more feet,
and one case in Nevada is reported by Charles W. Irish,
chief of Irrigation Inquiry United States Department of
Agriculture, where the roots were found penetrating
through crevices in the roof of a tunnel one hundred
and twenty-nine feet below the surface of an alfalfa field.
Prof. W. P. Headden of Colorado found roots nine feet
long from alfalfa only nine months old, and another
reports roots seventeen inches long of but four weeks'
growth, the plants being but six inches high. It usually
has a slender taproot, with many branches tending
downward, yet with considerable lateral growth. As the
taproot is piercing the earth it is also sending out new
fibrous roots, while the upper ones, decaying, are leav-
ing humus and providing innumerable openings for air,
the rains, and fertilizing elements from the surface soil.
The mechanical effect of this root-growth and decay in
the soil constitutes one of the greatest virtues of the
plant, and by its roots alfalfa becomes, self-acting, by far
the most efficient, deep reaching subsoiler and renovator
known to agriculture.

VARIETIES AND PECULIARITIES

There are several other varieties of alfalfa besides
Medicago sativa, the most common being the Interme-

An Eight-year-old Alfalfa Plant

with 312 stems growing from one root. Grown at Manhattan, Kan., on high

upland prairie having a stiff, hardpan subsoil. Depth to water 180 feet

Height of growth ^lay 6, ten inches

Crown of Plant Shown in the Preceding Illustration

Stalks removed to show branching crown

Alfalfa Blossoms Enlarged

HISTORY, DESCRIPTION, VARIETIES AND HABITS 7

diate Lucerne or Medicago media, the Yellow Lucerne
or Medicago foliata and Turkestan alfalfa or Medicago
sativa Turkestanica. None of these have such unquali-
fied value as the ordinary alfalfa ; in fact the first two
are properly regarded as weeds when found with Medi-
cago sativa. In 1898 when there had been reported
many failures in the alfalfa districts of the extreme
North and the extreme Southwest, the United States
Department of Agriculture sent Prof. N. E. Hansen of
South Dakota to Russia, especially the cold, arid and
semi-arid portions of northern Turkestan, to discover if
possible a more hardy strain of alfalfa than that grown
in America. He brought back from there several hun-
dred bushels of seed which was distributed to govern-
ment stations and individual experimenters in forty-
seven states and territories. The reports of its behav-
ior varied greatly, some growers being enthusiastically
in its favor, while most reported results below or not
above the average from other sorts, and some practically
a failure. It would appear from the consensus of opin-
ion at this time that the Turkestan alfalfa has not dem-
onstrated in America any such superiority as to justify
its general adoption, even in the dry and warm regions
of the Southwest, in our colder states, or in Canada.

Among other claims for Turkestan alfalfa by the gov-
ernment officials in charge of its introduction and
exploitation have been that ''its seed will germinate
much quicker and the plants start into growth earlier
under the same conditions than common alfalfa. The
plants are more leafy, grow^ more rapidly, and have a
stronger, more vigorous root system. Another advan-

5 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

tage which the Turkestan variety has is that the stems
are more slender and less woody, the plants making a
more nutritious hay of finer quality. That it will with-
stand drought under the same conditions better than
ordinary alfalfa seems certain from the reports of the
experimenters. In the West and Northwest, at least, it
seems to be more productive, both with and without
irrigation."

At the North Dakota station Turkestan alfalfa sown
in 1901 yielded in the three years following (1902-3-4)
at the average rate of slightly more than two tons per
acre annually.

Acclimation of alfalfa is a slow process, and numerous
close observers think there are too many radical differ-
ences in climate and possibly of soil between Turkestan
and New Mexico, or North Dakota, to admit of this
variety's becoming a preeminently valuable acquisition
to America. It is thought more reasonable to let the
American-grown alfalfa gradually accustom itself, as it
will, to any particular region, sowing seed from nearly
the same latitude and grown under as nearly as possible
the conditions it will encounter in its new environment.

In 1903 the Department of Agriculture began experi-
menting on a small scale at stations in Arizona, Califor-
nia and the warm regions with alfalfa seed procured by
Mr. D. G. Fairchild, from Arabia. The officials in
charge observe that the plants from this seed appear to
make a much quicker growth after cutting, and as a
result of this one more crop in a season than is obtained
from other alfalfa may be possible. It differs from
other strains in having larger leaflets and in being much

HISTORY^ DESCRIPTION^ VARIETIES AND HABITS Q

more hairy. "It is thought very probable that by careful
selection hardiness can be bred into Arabian alfalfa so
that it will grow much farther north than it does at
present."

AN OPINION FROM HEADQUARTERS

As a latter day opinion or estimate of alfalfa from an
official who is presumed to speak as an authority, with-
out bias and knowing his subject, the words of W. J.
Spillman, agrostologist of the United States Department
of Agriculture, should carry weight. In an address
before the eleventh annual convention of the National
Hay Association, at St. Louis, in 1904, Professor Spill-
man said :

**Alfalfa is the oldest plant known to man; it is the
most valuable forage plant ever discovered. It has not
been appreciated in the eastern part of the United States
until the last five years. We are now growing it success-
fully in every state in the Union, and I believe it is safe
to say in every agricultural county in the United States
it is being grown with success. Two weeks ago I
secured a picture of a field of alfalfa in South Carolina
that was sowed over sixty-nine years ago. It was still
in pretty good condition. I know of another field in
New York State sowed forty-five years ago, and one in
Minnesota that was sowed thirty-three years ago. All
over the West there are thousands of fields of alfalfa
that were sowed twenty-five years ago that are still yield-
ing large crops. In Wisconsin alfalfa yields three crops
of hay a year, and in Texas, four and five large crops.
In southern California, below sea-level, where they

10 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

never have any frost, they cut alfalfa eleven times a year,
and in Texas, south of the Rio Grande, they cut it nine
times a year.

"Alfalfa does not exhaust the soil. Nitrogen is the
soil's most important element, and the one most liable to
give out; the one the farmer is called upon to supply
first. Alfalfa does not ask the farmer for nitrogen at
all, because it can get its nitrogen out of the atmosphere.
Four-fifths of the atmosphere consists of nitrogen.
Ordinarily, plants cannot make use of that nitrogen at
all; the roots of the alfalfa will leave in the soil eight
or ten times as much nitrogen as was there before. The
farmer who plants alfalfa, clover or peas does not have
to get nitrogen from the fertilizer factories. I know one
farmer who for the past eight years has made an average
of eight and one-half tons per acre of alfalfa on irri-
gated land in the state of Washington. I have heard
of other men that produced twelve tons an acre in south-
ern Texas on irrigated land. It would hardly be possible
to produce that much on land that is not irrigated,
because rain does not come to order.

*T have lived ten years in a country where the horses,
cattle, sheep, hogs and chickens eat alfalfa hay, or green
alfalfa, the year round. It is the richest hay food
known. Eleven pounds of it is worth as much for feed-
ing purposes as ten pounds of bran."

A most pleasing word-picture of alfalfa is that by
Geo. L. Clothier, M. S., who has studied his subject
closely in the field, the feed lot and the laboratory, and
he paints it thus :

HISTORY, DESCRIPTION, VARIETIES AND HABITS II

"The cultivation and feeding of alfalfa mark the high-
est development of our modern agriculture. Alfalfa is
one of nature's choicest gifts to man. It is the preserver
and the conserver of the homestead. It is peculiarly
adapted to a country v^ith a republican government, for
it smiles alike on the rich and the poor. It does not fail
from old age. It loves the sunshine, converting the
sunbeams into gold coin in the pockets of the thrifty
husbandman. It is the greatest mortgage lifter yet
discovered.

'The alfalfa plant furnishes the protein to construct
and repair the brains of statesmen. It builds up the
muscles and bones of the war-horse, and gives his rider
sinews of iron. Alfalfa makes the hens cackle and the
turkeys gobble. It induces the pigs to squeal and grunt
with satisfaction. It causes the contented cow to give
paiisful of creamy milk, and the Shorthorn and white-
faced steers to bawl for the feed rack. Alfalfa softens
the disposition of the colt and hardens his bones and
muscles. It fattens lambs as no other feed, and promotes
a wool clip that is a veritable golden fleece. It compels
skim-milk calves to make gains of two pounds per day.
It helps the farmer to produce pork at a cent and a half
a pound and beef at two cents.

* 'Alfalfa transforms the upland farm from a some-
time waste of gullied clay banks into an undulating
meadow fecund with plant-food. It drills for water,
working 365 days in the year without any recompense
from man. The labor it performs in penetrating the
subsoil is enormous. No other agricultural plant leaves
the soil in such good physical condition as alfalfa. It

12 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

prospects beneath the surface of the earth and brings
her hidden treasures to the hght of day. It takes the
earth, air, moisture and sunshine, and transmutes them
into nourishing- feed stuffs and into tints of green and
purple, and into nectar and sweet perfumes, alluring the
busy bees to visits of reciprocity, whereon they caress
the alfalfa blossoms, which, in their turn, pour out secre-
tions of nectar fit for Jupiter to sip. It forms a partner-
ship with the micro-organisms of the earth by which it
is enabled to enrich the soil upon which it feeds. It
brings gold into the farmer's purse by processes more
mysterious than the alchemy of old. The farmer with a
fifty-acre meadow of alfalfa will have steady, enjoyable
employment from June to October ; for as soon as he has
finished gathering the hay at one end of the field it will
be again ready for the mower at the other. The homes
surrounded by fields of alfalfa have an esthetic advan-
tage unknown to those where the plant is not grown.
The alfalfa meadow is clothed with purple and green
and exhales fragrant, balmy odors throughout the grow-
ing season to be wafted by the breezes into the adjacent
farmhouses."

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Seeds of the Weed Known as Buck-horn

Ribbed plantain, English plantain, or Rib-grass, (Plautago hu.ceolata). Very

commonly present in alfalfa seed, especially that of European origin

A bad weed. Magnification five diameters

Alfalfa Seeds Magnified Five Diameters

Note the characteristic angular point at one end, typical of alfalfa. The kidney

shaped type, as in "a" is also characteristic. The rounded type b

is rare, and resembles Sweet clover. Seeds marked "c" and

"d" resemble Yellow trefoil in the projecting "beak"

CHAPTER IL

Universality of Alfalfa

ITS WIDE DISTRIBUTION

As the history of alfalfa is traced in the preceding
chapter the conclusion is reached that its distribution is
not to be circumscribed by any hard and fast lines of
climate and soil. It is grown profitably in every country
of Europe, in central Asia, its original home, in Austra-
lia, the islands of the sea, and in almost every state and
territory of the United States, and in Canada. Only two
states, Maine and New Hampshire, and only one ter-
ritory, Alaska, are left wholly in the experimental col-
umn. Everywhere else there have been such results as
to prove that it ought to become, in greater or less degree,
a staple crop on practically every farm, dependent only
upon more energy, faith and skill on the part of the
farmer, and a natural acclimation. There are several
other states such as Vermont, ^Massachusetts, Connecti-
cut, Rhode Island, Michigan, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ar-
kansas and North Dakota where the experiment station
experts are not fully ready to recommend it as a regular
crop for every farm, yet, in each of these there are en-
terprising farmers who have for years found profit in
its raising. The station authorities in Vermont say that
success with alfalfa there ^'depends first on the man, and
second on the soil."

14 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

W. R. Dodson, botanist of the Louisiana station, says
it is his firm conviction that nothing will contribute so
much as alfalfa toward making the southern farm self-
supplied with feed for work animals, for the production
of dairy products, and home raised meat. *'I doubt," he
also says, "if alfalfa does better anywhere outside the
irrigated regions of the West than it does in the alluvial
lands of Louisiana. We have had as high as eight cut-
tings in one year, with a total tonnage larger than is had
in Kansas or Nebraska, and our annual rainfall is sixty-
five inches, or more."

From Ontario, Canada, conies a report of a yield of
four tons to the acre in three cuttings, on a clay hillside ;
at far-off Medicine Hat, Northwest Territory, it makes
a growth pronounced "phenomenal," and at the experi-
mental farm at Brandon, Manitoba, three cuttings per
year are harvested. On a gravelly hill in the District of
Columbia, a field was sown in April, 1900. Two crops
were cut from it that summer, three in 1901, and the
first cutting in 1902 yielded three tons per acre. In
southern Minnesota, some thrifty Germans, not knowing
that "alfalfa will not grow in Minnesota," have been
raising it since 1872, while others were declaring it im-
possible. A half -score of men in the sagebrush wilds
of Nevada decided to try it, and in 1872 they had 625
prosperous acres, without plowing and without irriga-
tion. J. H. Grisdale, agriculturist of the Central experi-
mental farm at Ottawa, (Bui. No. 46) says, "it is grown
in Canada more or less extensively from the Atlantic to
the Pacific. It is the staple forage plant for winter in the
dryer part of British Columbia, and it has been grown in

UNIVERSALITY OF ALFALFA 1 5

Southern Alberta for many years. It is not much known
in Alanitoba, but is possible of easy propagation in almost
all parts of Ontario. It is, and has been grown long and
successfully in Quebec, and is not unknown in Nova
Scotia and New Brunswick." In Cape Colony, South
Africa, ''lucerne can be cut from four to six times in
summer and from once to twice in winter, and is the
greatest forage plant in the world." In 1901 the Brit-
ish consul at Buenos Ayres reported alfalfa as covering
"an enormous area in Argentina, and every year becom-
ing more important."

NOT PAKTICUIiAR AS TO SOIL

While experts have been declaring that alfalfa would
only grow in certain soils and in certain climates it has
proven adaptability to nearly all climates and almost all
soils. It produces with a rainfall as scant as 14 inches,
and in the Gulf states flourishes with 65 inches. It gives
crops at an elevation of 8000 feet above sea level,
and in southern California it grows below sea level to a
height of six feet or over, with nine cuttings a year, ag-
gregating ten to twelve tons. An authenticated photo-
graph in possession of the writer, reproduced opposite
page 231, shows a wonderful alfalfa plant raised in the
(irrigated) desert of southern California, sixty feet
below sea level, that measured considerably more than
ten feet in height. Satisfactory crops are raised, but on
limited areas as yet, in Vermont and Florida. New York
has grown it for over one hundred years in her clay and
gravel; Nebraska grows it in her western sand hills
without plowing, as does Nevada on her sagebrush

l6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

desert. The depleted cotton soils of Alabama and rich
corn lands of Illinois and Missouri each respond gener-
ously with profitable yields to the enterprising farmer,
while its accumulated nitrogen and the sub-soiling it ef-
fects are making the rich land more valuable and giving
back to the crop-worn the priceless elements of which it
has been in successive generations despoiled by a con-
scienceless husbandry.

Its introduction into Maryland was largely through
the perseverance of Prof. W. T. L. Taliaferro of the
agricultural college, who says: 'The future for alfalfa
for southern Maryland is bright, indeed, and with its
general introduction will come a new era of prosperity
for the 'lower counties.' Live stock farming will take the
place of tobacco farming. The fertilizing elements of
the soil will be concentrated at home instead of being
shipped abroad. Larger crops will be raised. Soil im-
provement will take the place of soil exhaustion; worn-
out farms will be restored to their original fertility."

THE ORACLES REFUTED

One by one the oracular statements of so-called ex-
perts have been shown at fault. One said, ''it will grow
wherever corn will grow;" and as promptly men from
New York and Louisiana rise and say that they are
growing it where corn will not grow. Another declares,
"it will not grow over a hardpan or gumbo subsoil;"
at once a New York man reports a good field of alfalfa
with roots fifteen feet long that pass through six inches
of hardpan which was so hard that it had to be broken
with a pick axe in following the root. A Kansas man
writes that he has eighty acres that has stood five years

UNIVERSALITY OF ALFALFA 1 7

and promises to continue indefinitely, yielding 4 1-2
tons from three cuttings a year, and the whole of it
on gumbo soil where corn raising was a failure. An-
other declares, *'it must have a rich, sandy loam," and
forthwith from the deserts of Nevada, the sand hills of
Nebraska and the thin, worn, clay soils of the South
come reports of satisfactory yields. Such results are
significant, indicating better returns than any other crop
brings from these varied soils, and that few farmers
are justified in postponing the addition of alfalfa to
their agriculture because of supposed hindrance of soil
and climate.

A XEAV YORK EXAMPLE

As citing an example, and suggestive of the fact that
alfalfa not only grows but flourishes in the eastern states
where the claim has been made that it would not grow,
the following by the editor of the Rural New-Yorker, in
his journal of September 3, 1904, is forcibly to the point :

"A farmer visiting the New York state fair this year
will do well to take time to look at some of the alfalfa
fields near Syracuse. Whether it means that the soil in
this locality is well suited to alfalfa, or that farmers have
learned how to grow it, it is a fact that the crop makes a
wonderful showing there. You find it everywhere — in
great billowy fields of green, along the roadsides — even
in vacant city lots. The crop crowds in whether the
seed is sown by hand, dropped from a passing load or
scattered by the wind. The majority of the farms show
great fields of it, and the character of farming is slowly
changing as more and more alfalfa is cut. On fruit
farms or small private places the crop is changing meth-

l8 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

ods and habits. A few acres in alfalfa provides all the
roughness needed for stock on these small places, and
gives extra room for fruit or similar crops. In fact, the
most interesting thing about these alfalfa fields is the
way they are changing the entire conditions of the coun-
try. It is similar to what happens when a new industry
is established in a town or city.

''The Grange meeting at a Mr. Worker's farm, was
held in a great barn. He had delayed the alfalfa cut-
ting so that the barn might be empty. Some other farm-
ers nearby had already cut. I had a chance to see alfalfa
growing under what seemed to me about the toughest
chance you can give a plant. The city of Syracuse is
buying gravel from his field, to use on the street. The
workmen are digging right into the hill, and it requires
hard labor to pick up this tough, hard soil. As they dig
they follow the roots of the alfalfa down. Some of the
roots are quite as large as my thumb, and I am sure that
many of them had gone down twenty feet at least into
this tough soil. These big roots make plowing an al-
falfa sod anything but fun. This is one of the few ob-
jections to the crop. I had supposed that the plant does
its best where it can work down into an open or gravel
subsoil. I have been told by one who is called an 'ex-
pert' that alfalfa cannot thrive on a hardpan subsoil,
yet here it was going down into the toughest soil I ever
saw, and covering the surface with a perfect mat of
green stalks. Mr. Worker goes so far as to say that the
tougher the subsoil the better the alfalfa goes through it,
provided water does not stand about the roots. That is
one point upon which all agree — the alfalfa cannot stand

UNIVERSALITY OF ALFALFA I9

wet feet. It must have water enough; that is why its
roots go down so far, but it will not thrive in wet fields
where water does not run easily away.

''On other farms I saw the alfalfa growing at the top
of steep clay hills, which were formerly almost useless
for farm purposes unless stuffed with stable manure.
Now that alfalfa has been started these hill-tops have
become about the most profitable fields on the farm. At
another place I saw a fair crop of alfalfa growing in a
thin streak of soil over a rocky ledge. There were not
eighteen inches of soil covering the solid rock, yet the
alfalfa was thriving. I have been told that this is the
condition under which alfalfa will not grow, yet here it
was giving more forage than any red clover we can
grow. I have said that the spreading of these alfalfa
fields is changing the character of farming in central
New York. It is not easy to realize just what this means
without visiting this favored section. This new forage
plant brings fertility and feed to the farm. It is just
like having a fertilizer factory and a feed store drop out
of the skies upon the farm, to get this alfalfa well
started. Of course as the farmer learns what the crop
will do he uses it more and more to feed both stock and
the farm. It would not be a very bright farmer who
would continue to grow wheat or some other annual
crop which brings him $25 per acre when a permanent
crop like alfalfa will guarantee $60. Some farmers are
quicker to see this than others, but in the end the major-
ity of them see it and then we see a change. These alfalfa
farmers are giving a great object lesson, and their farms
are more interesting than any exhibit at the state fair."

CHAPTER III,

Yields, and Comparisons With Other
Crops

COMPARED WITH CLOVER

Many things are understood best through contrasts
with others better known. In every part of the country
certain crops are considered standard, and all others are
judged by comparison with these. For example, red
clover in most parts of the United States is ranked as
the richest and best yielding forage, and the fertilizer
and renovator par excellence.

The Massachusetts experiment station after a series
of tests reports that lOO pounds of clover contain 47.49
pounds of digestible food and 6.95 pounds of proteids,
while 100 pounds of alfalfa contain 54-43 pounds of
digestible food and 11.22 pounds of proteids.

The New Jersey station reports that the average yield
per annum of green clover to the acre is 14,000 pounds,
and of green alfalfa 36,500 pounds; the protein in the
clover is 616 pounds and in the alfalfa, 2214 pounds ; one
ton of alfalfa has 265 pounds of protein, and clover only
246 pounds. But alfalfa will produce three, four, or
more cuttings each year, while clover will produce but
one or at most two. Further, clover will ordinarily sur-
vive but two years, while alfalfa will last from ten to one

YIELDS AND COMPARISONS WITH OTHER CROPS 21

hundred, thus saving many plowings and seedings. It
is also estimated that the stubble and root-growth of
alfalfa are worth at least four times as much for humus
as are those of clover, while the mechanical and other
beneficent effects of the long alfalfa roots far excel those
of clover. The alfalfa field is green for pasturage a
month earlier in the spring than clover and may be
mowed a month earlier. It starts a vigorous growth at
once after cutting, covering the ground with its luxu-
riant foliage before the second growth of clover has
made any substantial progress.

The Wisconsin experiment station says that ''one acre
of alfalfa yields as much protein as three acres of clover,
as much as nine acres of timothy and twelve times as
much as an acre of brome grass."

COMPARISONS WITH SEVERAL. GRASSES

Plat No.

10
11

12t

Variety Grown

June Clover

Mammoth Clover..

Alsike Clover . ..

Alfalfa (first cutting) 26

inches high, June 29th.

Blue-grass

Orchard grass

Timothy

Red-top

Meadow fescue

Tall meadow oat grass...

Italian rye grass

Timothy, blue-grass and

orchard grass mixed ..

Hay lbs.

473
475
413

816
575
478
560
470
375
600

Yield per acre, lbs.

2,365
2.375
2,065

4,080
2,875
2,390
2,800
2,350
1,875
3.000

1,015

♦The alfalfa plat yielded a second cutting 26 inches high on August 2nd, and a
third 24 inches high September 1st; there was also a six-inch after-erowth esti-
mated at 180 pounds. The total alfalfa yield was equivalent, "approximately to
6 1-2 tons of good dry forage." None of the other clovers or grasses gave more
than one cutting.

tRobbed somewhat of both plant food and moisture by an adjacent row of
grown Cottonwood trees.

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

The Nebraska experiment station has made very care-
ful tests of the comparative yields of various grasses,
clovers and mixtures. These were on plats of one-fifth
of an acre. The foregoing table shows the yields the
second year from planting, which owing to the very dry
spring was a quite unfavorable season.

COMPARED WITH CORN

The Colorado station reports a comparison with corn
as follows :

Yield per acre of Corn and Alfalfa

Corn, lbs.

Alfalfa, lbs.

Dry Matter

3,605

296

2,186

1,060

5,611

1,198
3,114

Starch Sugar etc

Fiber !

1,198

Fat

101

INDIVIDUAL INSTANCES OF CASH RETURNS

A Lincoln county, Kansas, farmer writes that from
five acres of alfalfa he received in one season $ioo for
hay, $150 for seed and $20 for straw.

A farmer near Atwood, Rawlins county, Kansas, cut
two crops for hay and threshed the third crop for seed,
realizing 13 bushels per acre, which sold at $5 per bushel.

A Harlan county, Nebraska, farmer reports an income
of $774 in one year from seed and hay from six acres.

Scott Bros., of Pottawatomie county, Kansas, report
to the author as follows concerning their returns from a
twelve-acre field in one year:

YIELDS AND COMPARISONS WITH OTHER CROPS 23

2 hay crops, 30 tons at $12 $360

105 bushels of seed at $6 630

Straw 50

Fourth cutting, 12 tons at $12 144

Total, one year's return $1,184

A Buffalo county, Nebraska, farmer sold from a year's
growth on 22 acres, hay worth $328.12, seed $1000, and
straw $150.

A Montgomery county, Kansas, farmer reports to the
author a return of $106 per acre in one year from hay,
seed and straw.

Another report was sent in 1904 from southern Kan-
sas, of five cuttings, making 8 1-2 tons per acre, which
sold at $5 per ton in the field.

SOME REPORTS OF YIELDS

A farmer of Harvey county, Kansas, reported in 1903
two hay crops and one seed crop, the hay, seed and straw
returning more than $50 per acre from a field that two
years before had failed to yield enough corn to justify
its gathering.

Sixteen acres in Reno county, Kansas, are reported to
have pastured in 1904 four hundred pigs and yielded one
cutting of hay of over 16 tons.

An alfalfa field of eleven acres in Washington, on the
bank of the Columbia river, under irrigation, produced
in 1 90 1 over 100 tons of hay.

Former Governor W. D. Hoard, of Wisconsin, reports
from three-fifths of an acre on his farm in the southern
part of the state, four cuttings in one season, yielding
5.7 tons of hay.

24 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Alva Langston, of Henry county, Indiana, sowed five
acres of alfalfa May 20th, and harvested nearly ij/^ tons
of hay per acre August 25th following, and about the
same quantity September 20th to 25th. This was on
upland, thirty or more years in cultivation. The alfalfa
was clipped twice before the cutting for hay.

In 1902 F. S. Kirk of Garfield county, Oklahoma,
sowed a field near a creek, but about 25 feet above water,
with thirty to thirty-five pounds of alfalfa seed per acre,
broadcast. The soil, which he calls ^'higli bottom," was
a dark brown and contained considerable sand. For two
years no attention was given the alfalfa except harvest-
ing from it three crops the second year and four the
third year. In 1905 he harvested from ten acres nine
cuttings, estimated to weigh fully one and one-half tons
each, per acre. The longest time between any two cut-
tings was twenty-two days, and the shortest fourteen
days. During the season of 1904 seven cuttings were
made and the field was gone over with a disk harrow
early each time after removing the hay from the field.
It was possible to cut another growth of 8 to 12 inches,
had he not preferred to use it as pasturage for stock.

Mr. Kirk does not irrigate and maintains that in his
part of the country "the best irrigation for alfalfa is with
a disk harrow." He also insists that "alfalfa can be en-
tirely killed by disking in the dark of the moon," espe-
cially if the weather that follows is hot and dry. He pas-
tures his alfalfa with cattle and horses in fall and spring,
and disks in the spring as soon as the stock is removed.

YIELDS AND COMPARISONS WITH OTHER CROPS 25
SOME MONEY COMPARISONS

A good acre corn crop in Ohio is forty bushels, worth
not to exceed $20, after all the labor of cultivating and
husking; the stover, if properly cared for, ought to be
worth $5, making a total of $25. An Ohio farmer reports
a yield of 4^/^ tons of alfalfa hay per acre, worth for feed
as compared with the price of bran about $12 per ton,
or a total value of $54, from only one plowing in six
years (as long as he let it stand) and with less labor in
harvesting than for husking corn and caring for the
stover.

A good Kansas or Nebraska corn yield ( far above the
state average) is 50 bushels per acre, worth ordinarily
about $17, with stover worth $3. The farmer should
obtain from his alfalfa at least four to five tons, worth
to him for feed for cattle, hogs or sheep from $10 to $12
per ton — practically two or three times his income from
an acre of corn, while the cost of production is much less.

The average year's corn or wheat crop is worth only
about $10 per acre, while the average alfalfa crop is
worth on the market from $15 to $35, or more, per acre,
owing to the market appreciation of the crop, and from
$35 to $60 as feed for stock.

Many thousands of acres in western Kansas and
Nebraska are now returning from their alfalfa fields an
income of from $15 to $25 per acre where but a few
years earlier the land was deemed worthless for agricul-
ture. Hundreds of acres in western New York that

26 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

were returning only a small income above cost of labor
and fertilization are now supporting great money mak-
ing dairies from alfalfa. Cotton land in the South rents
for $5 per acre, while alfalfa fields bring a yearly rental
of three times that amount.

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CHAPTER IV.

Seed and Seed Selection

NO SUCCESS WITHOUT GOOD SEED

It is a time-worn but no less true saying that good
seed is essential to good agriculture. No matter how
well the farmer prepares his land, no matter how much
time, labor and money he spends on it, if much or all of
his seed fails to grow, he will either have a poor crop or
be obliged to reseed, thus losing time and labor. Many
causes may contribute to prevent a good stand, but if
he can eliminate any one of these, he is by so much the
gainer. Poor seed is a primary and great cause of a poor
stand.

The farmer obtains his seed from one of two sources ;
he raises it or buys it. If the former, there should be
less danger, as the chief source of poor seed is careless
handling in harvesting and storing. If the seed becomes
damp, mold will damage much of it, or it will sprout,
then dry out, and the germ be killed. If seed is bought
of strangers or from a distance, the chances of poor qual-
ity increase many fold. If all seed were bought of
reliable dealers, there would be less cause for complaint,
but farmers too often buy where they can buy cheapest.
They pay for trash that is either full of harmful weed
seeds or has a liberal admixture of old and dead seeds
left over from previous seasons.

28 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Before seed is purchased it should be tested for purity
and germination. The adage that a dollar saved is a
dollar earned well applies here; it is an easy matter to
waste a dollar on seed, and when profit depends on avoid-
ance of useless expenditure the use of inferior seed
points its own moral.

IMPORTANCE OF SIMILAR CONDITIONS

The farmer who has brought himself to the point of
introducing alfalfa upon his farm should be extremely
careful in the selection of seed. In the first place it is
important that he should sow such as is produced in
about the same latitude as his farm and from a region of
about the same rainfall, thus keeping in a line of accli-
mation, and with the habits and habitat, as it were, of
what he is seeking to raise. Next, he should not sow
seed raised under irrigation if he is in a non-irrigation
region. A Michigan farmer, for example, should sow
seed grown as near to his latitude as possible, say, from
Wisconsin, Minnesota or the Dakotas, or not south of
Nebraska or Kansas. It is questionable, at present,
whether it is wise or profitable to attempt raising alfalfa
seed in the more humid districts of the eastern and south-
ern parts of the United States. It may be economy to
leave the raising of seed to those regions with the least
summer rainfall, keeping always in mind the securing of
seed grown under conditions nearly like those to which
the seed is to be introduced.

Speaking of the alleged different varieties of alfalfa,
the seed of which is urged upon buyers by seedsmen, the
editor of the Oklahoma Farm Journal pertinently says :

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 2g

''We see occasional references to 'dry land' alfalfa
and statements that it's a kind that just longs for the
hilltops so that it may turn off big crops of rich hay from
land too dry and hard to yield good sorghum. Don't for-
get that the one thing to look for when purchasing alfalfa
seed is good seed, that will grow. It's hard to find and
the price is usually high. When you buy it, buy subject
to test and send a fair sample of about an ounce to your
experiment station, where it will be tested without charge.
At the present time there is but one variety of alfalfa that
Oklahoma farmers should buy, and that is good alfalfa
seed. There is no 'dry land' variety of alfalfa, and the
much boomed Turkestan variety isn't as good for sowing
in Oklahoma as Oklahoma or Kansas grown seed. Rich
soil, thorough preparation, good seed wdl sowed, cutting
at the right time, harrowing when weeds and grass
bother, all these are requisite to success with this most
valuable crop, and it pays for all the bother."

Seed from Nebraska and northwestern Kansas has
been generally successful through Iowa and Illinois, and
is probably adapted to Ohio and southern Pennsylvania.
Utah seed produces good crops in Minnesota, the ex-
tremes of cold and heat in Utah having developed a strain
that does well in cold climates. The writer would use
Utah grown seed for New York, northern New Jersey
and northern Pennsylvania, and seed from Wyoming or
Montana for New England. On the sandy land of south-
ern New Jersey, in Delaware and Maryland, the seed
grown in southern Colorado and southern Kansas ought
to do well.

30 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Prof. H. M. Cottrell, formerly agriculturist of the
Kansas experiment station, says: *'One year I sowed
20 acres to alfalfa — 19 acres with Utah grown seed and
one acre with imported seed ; both showed a germination
of over 98 per cent, and the growth was good from both
lots all through the season, with no difference that could
be detected. The next spring there was a good stand all
over the 19 acres seeded with Utah seed, and not a single
live plant on the acre seeded with the imported seed. I
have seen several trials with imported seed, and never
yet saw a good crop harvested from it. Usually after
passing through the first winter there is from one-fourth
to one-half a stand from such seed; the plants make a
weak growth and, if allowed to remain, most of them die
out in two or three years. Descriptions of the puny
growth in reports of failures of this crop, given by east-
ern growers, make one think that probably imported seed
had been sown. No intelligent farmer would take corn
grown in the warm soil and climate and long season of
southern Kansas and expect to grow a good crop in New
York on heavy soil with short seasons. It is even more
difficult to succeed with so great a change in growing
alfalfa, as it would have to withstand the long severe
winter, as well as the change in summer conditions. No
one should sow alfalfa seed without knowing where and
under what conditions it was grown."

New seed, other conditions being right, is always pref-
erable, although that kept for several years, properly
cared for, may have retained most of its germinability.
Such tests as have been made appeared to show a loss
in well stored seed of only about one and one-half per

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 3 1

cent of germinability in five years. W. P. Headden
(Colorado Bui. No. 35) after various experiments
declares, ''the results are positive in showing that the age
of seed up to six years does not affect its germinating
power." It is usually handled and stored by seedsmen
in the ordinary seamless cotton sacks holding from 150
to 160 pounds, and quoted and sold by the pound or
hundred-pounds instead of by the bushel. The legal
weight of a bushel of recleaned alfalfa seed is sixty
pounds.

Although the seed is handled in sacks for convenience,
seedsmen say there is no good reason wdiy it might not
be safely stored in bulk in bins without any deterioration
from heating, or otherwise. There might, however, be
some degree of danger from weevils or other insect
pests in warm weather. Exposed to too much light, seed
will lose its bright yellow color and change to a brownish
cast. When stored, dealers say, it does not go through a
'•'sweating" process as do the seeds of some other forage
plants and grasses.

IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF SEED

In years of large production in America and a short-
age in other countries, considerable American seed goes
abroad to Italy, France, Germany and Australia. The
largest portion is consigned to Germany because exten-
sive seed houses at Hamburg act as distributers to all
portions of the world, from which they receive demands.

In recent years the United States has been a buyer
rather than a seller, and imports have been as follows :

32 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Year Lbs.

1902-3 1,018,559

1903-4 2,200,267

1904-5 2,865,324

According to the government authorities the bulk of
the imported seed comes from Germany and France.
That having the best reputation in Europe comes from
Provence, (southeastern) France. A small quantity
comes from Italy, but it is not generally considered to be
of as good quality as that grown farther north. Seeds-
men complain that many consignments of the foreign
seed contain large quantities of Yellow trefoil and Bur
clover.

It is a fallacy popular among farmers and country
seed dealers that great quantities of alfalfa seed are
exported to be used for dyeing purposes. There is no
foundation in fact for such a belief, and the exportations
made, like the importations, are for seeding purposes
exclusively.

IMPURITIES AND ADULTERATIONS

A foremost source of danger and loss, aside from
infertile seed, is impurities and adulterants in the alfalfa
seed planted. Growers often are careless and do not
examine their alfalfa before or at the time of harvesting,
and do not reclean their seed after threshing, thus send-
ing out among innocent purchasers seed mixed with
those of weeds, inferior grasses and forage plants, and
with various trash which adds bulk and weight but has
no value. The commonest seed adulterants or impuri-
ties are those of Sweet clover (Melilotus alba) (Illus.

Yellow Trefoil Pods

The pods of \»lo\v trefoil are shaped as here shown and contain but a single
seed. Magnified four diameters

■j

k -.4^

^^^^^^^H

^^^H

Ik^^

^^1

^^^^^^^H

■1

B^^m^^^B

^jl

^^1

Alfalfa Seed Pods

Alfalfa has a spiral pod of two or three turns, often containing five or six seeds
Magnified four diameters

Sweet Clover Pods

:\ragnified four diameters

Bur Clover Seed Pods

The seeds are enclosed in a coiled pod which is covered with bristly projecti.ms
. as shown above. Magnified four diameters

SEED AND SEED SELECTION

opp. p. 26), Bur clover (Medicago denticulata), Spotted
clover (Medicago Arahica) (p. 67), Yellow trefoil or
Hop clover {Medicago lupulina) (p. 26), and the Dod-
ders (Cnscuta epithymum and Ciiscuta arvcnsis), (pp.
45 and 47).

That an extraordinary proportion of the alfalfa seed
in the markets, wheresoever from, is adulterated to an
amazing extent with seeds of undesirable plants or
loaded with worthless, if not actually harmful impurities,
is being demonstrated by the United States Department
of Agriculture. In a circular pertaining to this work
is given the following, showing the adulterants found in
samples bought in the open markets of the cities named :

Seeds used as adulterants.

City where bought

Providence, R. I...

Denver, Colo

Rochester, N. Y...
MilwaukeCj Wis. ..
Indianapolis, Ind.

Marblehead, Mass...

Petersburg, Va

Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Indianapolis, Ind...,

Pittsfield. Mass

Atlanta, Ga

Salem, 111

St. Paul, Minn

Louisville, Kv

New Haven, Conn...

Independence, Iowa.

New Orleans, La

Troy, N. Y

Sweet
clover

Per Cent

Bur clover

Per Cent

3.47
16.86
5.02
5.74
4.27
3.90
3.00

5.49
3.37

10.04

16.53
5.88

12.69
2.57
6.23

Yellow
trefoil

Per Cent
32.86
39*48

38.43
39.53

1.25
38.54

6.98
31.77

39.85

31.26

Total
adulterants

Per Cent

36.33
16.86
44.50

5.74
42.70
43.43

3.00

1.25

5.49
41.91

9.52
10.04

6.98
31.77
16.53
45.73
12.69

3.20
37.49

In Farmers' Bulletin No. 194 of the United States
Department of Agriculture is given the table on page 34

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

to snow the result of analyses of alfalfa seed imported
within a period of six months.

Bearing also upon the adulterations, impurities and
defectives found in alfalfa seed sold in the markets,
extracts from reports of tests made at the Wooster, Ohio
station (Bui. No. 142) are exceedingly interesting. In

Laboratory
test No.

21000,
21001.
21002,
21003,
21004 ,
21005.
21006.
21007.
21008 .
21009.

21010 .

21011 .

21012 .

21013 .

21014 .
21015 .

21016 .

21017 .

21018 .
21019 .
21020 .

21021 .

21022 ,

21023 .
21024,
21031 .
21032 .
21033
2103o,

Broken
Alfalfa seed
seed and
dirt

Per Ct.

93*38

92.1

82.28

84.72

89.16

74.06

58.74

80.12

73.02

96.82

80.2

96.96

88.84

96.24

91.06

93.44

77.78

81.52

69.48

96.5

96.4

94.4

24.5

94.14

94.58

87.72

90.56

89.04

72.36

Per Ct.

5.8

7.»4

15.92

11.58

8.78

21.38

34.46

\1M

22.32

2.72

12.1

2.16

3.98

2.66

5.44

2.7

16.04

12.18

23.78

3.04

2.82

5.04

70.96

1.8

3.44

11.02

8.08

10.5

27.1

Weed
seeds

Per Ct.

0.82
.56
1.8
3.7
2.06
4.56
6.8
2..'34
4.66
.46
1.7
.88
7.18
1.1
3.5
3.86
6.18
6.3
6.74
.46
.78
.56
4.54
4.06
1.98
1.26
1.36
.46
.54

Number
of weed
seeds in
1 pound

2,100

900

3,060

3,420

2,700

15,928

32,420

8,964

12,829

990

3,060

1,710

17,299

3,510

7,650

8,526

16,435

21,848

23,082

1,080

1,260

1,620

21,070

3,780

3,060

4,140

3,420

1,260

270

Number
ofdodder
seeds in
1 pound

2,520

5,490

270

360
720
810

Alfalfa
seed

that'll
grow

Per Ct.

63.73
59.17
66.64
57.39
62.18
53.87
28.78
61.36
49.65
85.2
55.59
87.26
43.2
11.^1
62.14
77.08
47.83
7.13
5.21
88.53
91.82
90.15
6.34
73.43
51.78
81.14
76.29
84.7
04.58

Amount
imported

Potmcis

4,000
30,8C0

5,500
32,877
14,700

7,613
33,075

8,779
32,963
33,000
30,800

5,500
33,000
21,340

8,778
33,000
33,000
16,280
38,172
44,000
44,000
72,600
12,540
234

5,500
143,000
33,000

6,673
13,516

fifteen samples bought, each of one dollar's worth, the
quantity of pure germinable seed was found to range
from 5.1 to 9.3 pounds; the number of noxious seeds
found in a dollar's worth of that bought as alfalfa seed
ranged from 360 to 185,940. Seven of the fifteen one-dol-
lar samples each carried more than 23,000 noxious seeds.

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 35

Seed bought at $7.80 per bushel showed as low as 61.2
per cent that was germinable, of which the actual cost
was $12.74 per bushel. None of the fifteen samples had
less than yy per cent of germinable seed. One pound
sample contained 21,728 noxious seeds, of which 18,144
were lamb's-quarter or pigweeds; the same pound also
had 3126 seeds of dodder. Another pound carried 6420
seeds of crab grass, and one had 3325 seeds of foxtail.

The station authorities recommend that no alfalfa seed
be sown until carefully screened through a screen fine
enough to remove dodder seeds. Wire sieves or screens
with twenty meshes to the inch are found to serve the
purpose.

ADULTERANTS DESCRIBED AND ILLUSTRATED

As a further and more thorough discussion of the fre-
quent adulterants. Prof. H. F. Roberts, botanist of the
Kansas experiment station, has kindly prepared, with
illustrations, for this volume the quoted statements which
follow here:

"The immense and steadily increasing value of alfalfa
as a forage crop in the United States, and the high price
of the seed, make the securing of sound, pure seed a
matter of supreme importance to farmers, and render it
equally important for them to be able to recognize, by
sight, the presence in alfalfa seed of the adulterants
and seeds of certain weeds most commonly known to
occur. There is conclusive evidence that an amount of
adulteration and substitution is actually practiced with
alfalfa seed. It is usually charged that this is done
abroad, especially, as is alleged, in Germany.

36 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

'The writer has been informed that, to a limited
extent, the practice exists in America. The chief adul-
terant used is the seed of the Yellow trefoil, or, as it is
sometimes called, Hop clover or Black medick. (See
illustrations opposite pages 26 and 32.) About fifty
species of plants are known as 'medicks' or, scien-
tifically, Medicago; but it so happens that the only
perennial species among them is alfalfa, which goes under
the botanical name of Medicago sativa, (p. i). Other
species such as Yellow trefoil {Medicago lupulina) (p.
38) and Bur clover {Medicago denticidata,) while they
possess some forage value and are useful to a lim-
ited extent, lack, for the most part, the lush, abun-
dant growth of alfalfa itself, and are notably inferior
through the fact of their annual habit. It is because
of its perennial nature, therefore, as well as on
account of its rank, succulent growth, that no species of
annual leguminous plant can hope to compete with alfal-
fa for a moment in importance. This means, then, that
any substitute for alfalfa seed, or adulteration of it with
the seed of another related species, such as Yellow tre-
foil or Bur clover, is distinctly a fraud of serious char-
acter, despite the fact that the adulterants are plants that
make fair pasturage and have some forage value. They
are merely annuals, ending their life with the season,
whereas a field of alfalfa should live twenty years or
more, under right conditions.

THE CHIEF ADULTERANT

"At present, as stated. Yellow trefoil is the chief adul-
terant used in American alfalfa seed. A number of cases,

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 37

indeed, of complete or almost complete substitution of
Yellow trefoil for alfalfa seed have come to the writer's
attention within the past year. It is important, there-
fore, for farmers to know the characteristic marks of
distinction between the seed of alfalfa and of its chief
adulterants. What are the chief characteristics of alfalfa
seed? Facing- page 13 are samples of pure alfalfa
seed, photographed under a magnification of five diam-
eters. It will be noted that seeds of three general types
exist : ( I ) A kidney-shaped type, marked *a' in the illus-
tration; (2) a type in which one end terminates in an
acute wedge, marked 'e'; and (3) a type that is round
or nearly so, marked *b'. These types clearly illus-
trated, arranged for comparison in parallel rows are
shown opposite page 44. See also page 27. It should be
noticed that type 2 is the most characteristic and frequent,
and that the perfectly round type is extremely rare. This
angular slant toward one tip of the seed is found nowhere
among any of the adulterants. Neither does the kidney
shape of seed occur, except in Bur clover; and, in that
case, the difference in the size of the seeds of the two
species is sufficient to distinguish them, in most instances.
"It is when we consider the round or roundish type
of alfalfa seed that there is difficulty in distinguishing
from alfalfa the seeds of Yellow trefoil and of Sweet
clover (illus. opp. p. 26), which latter frequently occurs
as a weed seed, and possibly in some cases in sufficient
quantity to be suspected as an adulterant. By comparison
of the seeds of alfalfa with the two adulterants just men-
tioned, (p. 26) the resemblances and differences of
the three species will become evident. In general the

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

seeds of Yellow trefoil are shorter and rounder than
those of alfalfa, the largest seeds of trefoil measuring
0.0629 inch wide by 0.0897 inch long ; whereas the larg-
est alfalfa seeds measure 0.0653 inch wide by o.i 153 inch
long; so that the largest alfalfa seeds are a trifle wider
and more than a third again as long as the largest trefoil

Yellow Trefoil : Black Medic : Hop Clover {Medicago lupulinoj

seeds. The smallest seeds of Yellow trefoil are usually
plumper and shorter than those of alfalfa (0.05 11 inch
wide by 0.0291 inch long, as compared with 0.0496 inch
wide by 0.0751 inch long in alfalfa) ; nevertheless, among
both the small and the large seeds, so far as the criterion
of size goes, individuals occur that equally well belong to
either species, and the average differences in size are

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 39

not SO great as the differences found on comparing the
largest and the smallest seeds of the two species, the
average for the trefoil being 0.0574 inch by 0.0799 inch,
and for alfalfa 0.0582 inch by 0.0944 inch. So it will be
seen at once that while trefoil seeds as a rule are smaller,
shorter and rounder than those of alfalfa, the rule is
transgressed by many individuals. We must, therefore,
turn to the form and general outline of the seed. A
farmer can detect at once an attempt to substitute wholly
Yellow trefoil for alfalfa seed by the fact that in no case
will the kidney-shaped or the regular-pointed types of
seed be found in trefoil, whereas these always occur in
alfalfa. (Illustrated opp p. 26.)

"In the more common cases, where adulteration rather
than complete substitution is practiced, detection is more
difficult — is practically impossible, in fact, without the
aid of a lens or magnifying glass having a power of
about fifteen diameters. There are many seeds of tre-
foil which can scarcely be distinguished from certain
rounded seeds of alfalfa. Generally, however, the trefoil
seed has a little projection or '*beak" on the middle line of
the seed, just back of the scar marking where the seed
was attached to the pod. This is rarely found in alfalfa.

"Bur clover as an adulterant is probably not so fre-
quently used as Yellow trefoil, since the larger size of
its seed renders detection easy. Were it not for this fact.
Bur clover would be a most effective adulterant, because
its seeds resemble those of alfalfa more closely than do
those of Yellow trefoil. There are, of course, smaller
seeds of Bur clover and larger seeds of alfalfa that ap-
proximate each other in size, but the averaere Bur clover

40 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

seeds measure 0.0604 inch by 0.1188 inch, as compared
with an average for alfalfa of only 0.0582 inch by 0.0944
mch.

''So far as the plants of Yellow trefoil and Bur clover
are concerned, they are easily distinguishable from
alfalfa. Both are of lower growth, as a rule, than alfalfa.
Both have wider leaflets, which, in Bur clover, are like
broad, inverted wedges. The flowers of these plants are
yellow, and are borne in scanty clusters. The pods are
wholly unlike those of alfalfa. Alfalfa has a spiral pod
of two or three turns (p. 32), containing as many as
five or six seeds. Yellow trefoil has a straight pod (p.
32), containing but one seed. Bur clover has a coiled pod
(p. 33), but covered with bristly projections that give the
plant its name. Where adulteration or substitution is
practiced, some of the pods are very apt to occur in the
bulk seed, and they can then easily be identified and dis-
tinguished from those of alfalfa.

''Seed of Sweet clover seems to occur frequently in
western-grown alfalfa seed (p. 26). Sweet clover (il-
lustrated in this book) grows to a height frequently
of from four to six feet, bearing small, white flowers on
slender spikes three or four inches long. Unfortunately,
and unlike Yellow trefoil and Bur clover, Sweet clover is
generally rejected by stock. On this account, it is a plant
of no generally established value for hay or as pasture,
although, in some instances, it is successfully used. The
seeds of Sweet clover are of a golden yellow when ripe;
those of alfalfa, trefoil and Bur clover being greenish yel-
low. The seed coat of Sweet clover seed is covered with
minute elevations, while alfalfa seed is smooth. The seeds

SEED AND SEED SELECTION 4I

of Sweet clover (p. 26) are rounder and plumper than
those of alfalfa, and have a very pronounced groove be-
tween the main body of the seed and the ridge which
marks the location of the rootlet of the young plant with-
in. It is this ridge that in alfalfa seeds runs off, as a rule,
in a marked slant, but which in both trefoil and Sweet
clover, especially in the latter, forms a well-rounded curve
to the tip of the seed. No pointed or kidney-shaped seeds
are ever seen in Sweet clover. (See illus. opp. p. 26.)

A COM3ION WSED IN IMPORTED ALFALFA SEED

**It remains to mention the most common weed found
in imported alfalfa seed — the English or Ribbed plan-
tain, or, as it is more generally called in the West, Buck-
horn or Rib grass. It is a difficult weed to eradicate,
lots of seed containing any noticeable percentage of it
should be rejected. (See illus. opp. p. 13.)

"The farmer is often to blame for the poor seed of
which he makes complaint. Prime alfalfa seed is expen-
sive, and a cheap grade will inevitably be poor in quality,
containing much dead seed, rubbish, and the seeds of
many kinds of weeds. Where 'cheap' alfalfa seed is
demanded it will always be sold, and buyers need not be
surprised by its quality. On the other hand, there is no
excuse or palliation for the offense of selling, under the
name and at the price of standard alfalfa seed, seed of
substituted species. It is the duty of seed dealers to ascer-
tain beforehand the character and genuineness of seed
that they sell vmder any given name, and this applies to
the retailers as well as to the wholesale dealers. On the

'42 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Other hand, farmers cannot expect to obtain the best seed
unless they are wilhng to pay the price it brings."

DODDER SEED

Dodder seeds are somewhat smaller than alfalfa seeds
(pp. 45 and 47), but are not separated from them except
by careful recleaning; consequently, they are often sown
along- with the alfalfa seed, especially in that which has
been imported. If a field is badly infested, it should be
plowed up and devoted to some other crop for a few
years. Prof. F. H. Hillman of Nevada (Bui. No. 47)
says there are several kinds that infest alfalfa, but two
kinds are especially common and destructive in this coun-
try. Ciiscuta epithymum is the commoner. "The seeds
of this (p. 47) are very small, and are almost sure to es-
cape detection on casual examination of the samples ; yet,
once recognized under the lens, their presence may be
easily discovered. They are so much smaller than alfalfa
seeds that the use of a sieve of twenty meshes per inch
separates them from the latter when only free dodder
seeds are present. Not only are various other small weed
seeds disposed of in the process, but little if any alfalfa
seed worth buying is lost. The few ripened flowers of
dodder retaining matured seeds, which sometimes pass
the thresher uninjured, may be removed by proper fan-
ning. It is safe to say that no purchaser of alfalfa seed
can afford to neglect sifting his seed carefully with a
twenty-mesh sieve, which is the mesh the writer recom-
mends for the separation of this kind of dodder from al-
falfa seed.

FEED AND SEED SELECTION 43

"Cuscuta arvensis is another dodder as destructive
when once estabHshed. Its seeds (p. 47) seem to be less
common, however. They are larger than the preceding,
many of them being practically the same size as the
smaller, more rounded alfalfa seeds, which they often
strikingly resemble. Thus they are hard to detect, and
cannot be removed without the loss of much small alfalfa
seed. This should be the more dreaded of the two dod-
ders, because alfalfa seed infested with seeds of Ciis-
cuta epithymum can be made practically free from them
with comparatively little loss and expense. Not so, how-
ever, with seed containing Cuscuta arvensis, which should
not be purchased at any price. Dodder seeds can scarcely
be regarded as an adulterant, yet as an impurity they are
very common and most objectionable." (See illustra-
tions opp. pp. 45, 46 and 47.)

CHAPTER F.

Soli and Seeding

VARIATE, YET UNIFORM

In this double title we have a case of the widest varia-
tions and the most positive and rigid uniformity. Alfal-
fa may be grown in almost every possible kind of soil
and under almost all soil conditions (save two), but
omitting these the seeding, including the tilth of the
ground, is based, so far as any future success is con-
cerned, on perfect cultivation. The dictum, ''Alfalfa
must have a dry, warm, sandy loam, very rich" has
become obsolete, as already pointed out.

There are just two soil conditions that seem absolutely
against the growth of alfalfa. The first is a soil con-
stantly wet. The common remark, ''Alfalfa will not
stand 'wet feet'," seems to be the expression of a law.
It does not do well where the water is nearer to the sur-
face than six feet, or where in winter water will stand
on the ground for over forty-eight hours. This invaria-
bly smothers the plants ; in fact it usually kills any crop.
If water flows over the field for some such time, due to
a freshet, the alfalfa is often found uninjured if too
much soil has not been deposited on and around the
plants. Even in such instances fields have been saved by
a disking once or twice, but it is wholly unwise to sow on

f#.a# •

^# #t *%

Three General Types of Alfalfa Seed

The right-hand column, kidney-shaped, a characteristic form, bvit not so common

as the type in the central column. The left-hand column approaches more

nearly the rounded type of Sweet clover. Magnification five diameters

Dodder Seed Magnified

Alfalfa Seed Magnified

SOIL AND SEEDING 45

a field subject to overflow, or one where water rises to
the surface in winter or spring; likewise on a field so flat
that water will not run off in time of a heavy rain or
promptly drain out through the sub-surface. The time
is rapidly coming everywhere when the intelligent farmer
will not try to raise any crop on such a field, undrained.
The alfalfa roots will find their way to moisture if given
the right surface conditions. There are profitable alfalfa
meadows in parts of Kansas where it is eighty feet to
water, but there has not yet been found one that is pros-
perous where water comes close to the surface, or where
it stands on the ground in winter.

The other kind of soil where alfalfa refuses to grow
is that in which there is too much acijity. This is often
the case where corn and wheat have been raised for many
years, thus robbing the soil of much lime; a condition
that may be remedied by an application of lime to the
land just before sowing the alfalfa, harrowing it in
beforehand or, if the seed is to be broadcasted, the lime
may be applied just before sowing, when once harrowing
will suffice for both, or it may be sown with a drill — 500
to 1000 pounds per acre.

A simple test for acidity is to make a deep cut in the
ground with a knife, pressing the earth slightly apart;
then push a piece of litmus paper into the opening and
press the earth together. Leave the paper there for a
few hours. If upon examination the litmus paper has a
pink appearance it is proof of acidity, and this, as already
said, may best be remedied with lime.

46 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

SOIL PREPARATION

With the only two negative points considered, the
more important conditions upon which success will
depend may be discussed. One chief essential is the
advance preparation. Many of the most successful
growers begin their preparations two or three years
before they sow the seed. There must be, by rights, the
most perfect physical condition of the soil. It should
have been plowed deep for at least two years, and in most
fields in the central and northern states a two- or three-
inch subsoiling along with a seven- or eight-inch plowing
will be very helpful.

If corn is to precede a spring sowing, the ground
should have a liberal dressing of stable manure plowed
under for humus, to encourage earthworms and to intro-
duce the particular bacteria so essential to alfalfa's wel-
fare or at least furnish favorable conditions for bacteria,
and the harrow should follow the plow each day. The
soil's condition should be like that for a garden. Care
should be taken never to work with the ground when
too wet, as such working almost inevitably results in
clods and baked soil. The corn should be cultivated
often, and a liberal sowing of cowpeas just before the
last cultivation, which should be shallow, has been found
quite helpful. This crop will repress and take the place
of weeds, furnish a rich food for fattening pigs or lambs
after the corn is cut, add fertility to the soil, and also
introduce bacteria similar to the bacteria for the alfalfa.
The cowpea, being a legume, prepares the way for
alfalfa, its near relative.

Dodder Plant on an Alfalfa Stem

Dodder, (Cusntta arz'cusis)

(a) A group of seeds (enlarged), showing the prevailing forms; (a, b, and c)

individual seeds having somewhat the form of clover seeds; (d) a grou]!

showing the natural size

Alfalfa and Dodder Seed. Actual Size

Dodder, (Cuscuta epithymum)

(a) A group of seeds showing comparative forms and relative size (enlarged) ;

(b) a group showing the natural size; (c) the embryo removed from the seed,
showing the form it usually assumes; (d) a section of a seed, showing the

manner in which the embryo lies imbedded in the endosperm

SOIL AND SEEDING 47

KEEP DOWN THE WEEDS

It is always timely to emphasize the very great impor-
tance of keeping down weeds in the cornfield where
alfalfa is to be sowed the next spring. If corn is husked
from the fields, the stalks should not be pastured except
when the ground is fully frozen. Later they should be
thoroughly broken, raked and burned, to leave the land
in the best condition for spring work. If the corn is cut
and fodder hauled off, the stubs should be broken in cold
weather by a pole or other drag, and raked and burned
as recommended for the stalks. This adapts the ground
for disking and harrowing early in March. Then every
ten days the field should be disked or harrowed to con-
serve moisture, to start weeds and then kill them, and to
bring the ground into the desirable tilth. Ordinarily, in
the central states, sowing may be done early in April,
while in the South this may be done by the middle of
March, and in Wisconsin and Canada by the last of April
or early May, although the dates are variable. Many
report seeding in Kansas the middle of May, obtaining a
clipping in July and a hay crop in September. Others
report sowing in March and cutting a hay crop in June.
Some Wisconsin reports say that the first of June is early
enough, while others in that state and in Minnesota pre-
fer to sow two or three weeks earlier, and still others in
Wisconsin sow in April. The important things to keep
in mind are to have the soil right and the weeds disposed
of, and to sow when the weather and moisture and condi-
tions are right. Alfalfa is a child of the sun; permanent
shade from any source is its enemy, and when young it is
not a good fighter against adversaries of any sort. More

48 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

failures are due to weeds than to any other one cause,
and unfortunately all the weeds do not grow on the land
of the farmer who is shiftless or neglectful. The latter
is so benevolent as to permit his weeds to scatter their
seeds to the fields of his neighbors.

If a spring sowing is to be made on wheat ground, the
land will be helped by a liberal dressing of manure imme-
diately after the harvest, and by plowing and harrowing
at once; then sowing about the last of August to rye or
wheat for fall and winter pasturage, and to prevent the
soil from leaching or washing. In the spring the land
should be disked and harrowed for alfalfa, keeping in
mind the point emphasized in the preceding paragraph.
Instead of the rye or wheat, cowpeas may be sowed after
the wheat harvest; thus both fertility and bacteria will
be added to the soil, and the farmer have a valuable pas-
ture crop for pigs or lambs. If the season is extremely
favorable, a hay crop may be cut in early October.

If potatoes are to precede a spring sowing of alfalfa,
more than usual care should be taken to keep the field
clean of weeds. Some farmers do well by sowing millet
with the last cultivation of potatoes, leaving the potatoes
in the ground until after the millet is harvested, and when
the crop is dug the land is free from weeds. Then it
may be harrowed or disked and seeded to rye for winter
pasture. Some plow the potato ground in the fall and
sow to wheat or rye. Certainly if weeds are present the
ground should be plowed as soon as the potatoes are
dug. The idea is to secure a fine seed bed and have
the ground free from weeds, the great curse of the
American farm. All things considered there is probably

SOIL AND SEEDING 49

no crop which leaves the soil in finer physical condition
for alfalfa-sowing than millet, and none that is more
unsatisfactory for a like purpose than sorghum or Kafir
corn that was planted in hills or rows.

A clover sod for a spring sowing should be plowed in
September or October, disked or harrowed, and not in-
frequently a light sowing of rye for winter pasture is
feasible. In early spring use disk and tooth harrows on
the land. It is excellent if a liberal application of rotted
stable manure is plowed under with the clover sod. Us-
ually it is better to follow clover with a corn or potato
crop before seeding to alfalfa.

FAIili SOWING

Fall sowing presents fewer difificulties than spring sow-
ing. Corn is not the preceding crop and hence the weed
problem is not so formidable. Usually a fall sowing fol-
lows millet or oats, cowpeas or potatoes. Almost any
crop except the sorghums may be grown to precede
alfalfa for a fall sowing; these should not be as they con-
sume too much moisture. If possible, put on a dressing
of stable manure the preceding winter; plow deep in the
spring and work to a fine tilth for the summer crop.
South of the latitude of 40 degrees cowpeas is one of the
best preparatory crops. They are legumes, and the
bacteria that live on their roots are similar to those
upon the alfalfa roots; they are also nitrogen-gath-
erers, taking nitrogen from the air as does the al-
falfa, and thus they prepare the soil for alfalfa. Be-
sides, cowpeas are a valuable forage, the hay being
worth almost as much, pound for pound, as that of

50 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

alfalfa. When cut off they leave the ground ready for
disking and other preparation. Millet is also excellent
for this purpose, leaving the soil unusually friable.
Potatoes make a satisfactory preparatory crop, but the
danger from them too often is neglect to keep the w^eeds
down. As soon as the land is free, it should be disked
and harrowed, and this repeated about every ten days
until the time for sowing.

RECENT PLOWING NOT DESIRABLE

It is seen that plowing for alfalfa just preceding the
seeding is not recommended. Plowing leaves the sub-
surface too loose, thus depriving the roots of a sufficiently
firm footing and making a full sowing more liable to
harm from freezing and thawing, and the spring sowing
to harm from a dry summer. The necessity of the most
perfect surface conditions cannot be to often empha-
sized, and this too includes considerable compactness
rather than a too light or ashy condition. There must
be no clods, no stiff and stubborn humps.

If alfalfa is to follow clover, and to be seeded in the
fall, the sod should be broken early after the clover is
harvested and each day's plowing harrowed that day;
then the held disked and cross-disked and harrowed
again. After that it should be disked, lapping half, every
ten or fifteen days until time for seeding. Alfalfa may
follow timothy if the sod is not too old and stubborn,
and it may be treated the same as clover sod.

INTRODUCE BACTERIA BY PREPARATORY SOWING

Another form of preparation followed by many suc-
cessful growers, men who do not complain about alfalfa

SOIL AND SEEDING 5 1

not doing well ''here," is the sowing of a few pounds of
alfalfa seed on the field two or three years before it is
intended to sow for a permanent crop. Mr. Joseph E.
Wing, of central western Ohio, a widely known farmer,
stockman, and writer on matters agricultural, uses alfalfa
in a regular rotation, and two years before he is ready
to sow it on a given field as a main crop, sows clover and
timothy along with two or three pounds of alfalfa seed,
for a pasture crop. Thus the bacteria are introduced,
and when the pasture is plowed for the full sowing of
alfalfa, the disking and harrowing that follow distribute
the bacteria throughout the soil, and the probabilities of
a good stand are greatly enhanced. He sometimes sows
two or three pounds of alfalfa seed to the acre with a
wheat crop two years before he is to sow the field entirely
to alfalfa. Another, in a state where the experiment
station director still declares alfalfa-raising to be doubt-
ful, writes that he has not had a failure in a decade, and
his plan is to precede alfalfa with winter wheat, sowing
a little alfalfa seed with the wheat, probably three pounds
to the acre, and the next fall after giving the land a thor-
ough preparation he sows fifteen pounds of alfalfa seed
to the acre. Another reports pleasing results in two dif-
ferent fields by sowing in the spring five pounds of alfalfa
seed with clover; in two years the alfalfa stood thick on
the ground, having crowded out the clover. If these
plans introduce the bacteria into the soil, it may be won-
dered why it would not be equally helpful to sow two or
three pounds of alfalfa seed per acre with the oats or
millet in the spring, preparatory to the thorough seeding
to alfalfa in the fall.

52 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Another man, whose profit in raising alfalfa has been
marked, reports that his soil is very waxy and hard to
deal with. He has met this trouble by listing his ground
in the fall and leaving it thus open for hard freezing
throughout the winter. He then disks and cross-disks
in the spring, putting the soil in fine tilth, and sowing
millet as a preparatory crop. He has occasionally sowed
alfalfa in the spring, following the fall listing and later
freezing of his ground.

ALIi CROPS DEMAND CONDITIONS

Alfalfa, like corn and cotton, demands certain condi-
tions of the soil and certain constituents in that soil.
Every crop demands its certain foods. All crops except
alfalfa and the other legumes obtain practically all their
food, including nitrogen, from the soil. The latter crops
use nitrogen but get it from the air. Alfalfa takes nitro-
gen from the soil only during the first few months of its
growth, and thereafter not only takes its own necessary
supply from the air, but a large surplus which it stores in
the soil, available for whatever crop may follow. Other
crops take much nitrogen from the soil, but contribute
nothing to its enrichment

SPRING OR FALL SOWING— WHICH?

This has been a much argued question with experi-
menters. Possibly it will be found to be of minor impor-
tance in itself, depending more upon other conditions
than the season. From the northern tier of states many
reports favor spring sowing, yet from each come letters
in favor of fall sowing. Several experiment stations in
the South are in favor of spring sowing, yet report sat-

SOIL AND SEEDING 53

isfactory results from fall seeding. It seems pretty well
established, however, that fall sowing is safer in the
central latitude states, say including Ohio, Nebraska,
Missouri, Kansas, Colorado and Utah, and states within
the same parallels.

In other states prevailing opinions favor spring sow-
ing. Nevertheless, when all conditions are understood,
fall sowing seems likely to become the established prac-
tice throughout the United States. This is in line with
the system for the more staple crops and common rota-
tion ; it gives opportunity to bring the ground into better
condition; the preparation and sowing come at the most
convenient season, and one of relatively greater leisure;
there is less interruption by unfavorable weather ; the soil,
responding more readily to surface cultivation, permits
the work to be done with less danger of surface water
retarding normal root development, and the annual
weeds being dead they cannot interfere with the first
growth of the alfalfa. Sown in the fall, with time to
secure some growth for winter protection, alfalfa will
be ready to respond to the first call of spring, and for
the mow^er early in June. Moreover, if it fails from
freezing or other cause, little crop-time is lost. The
farmer has but to disk and harrow in April or early May,
and sow half as much seed as he sowed in the fall, and
he will have prospect of a cutting in eighty or ninety
days, at an expenditure of but few pounds of seed and
a little labor.

DISADVANTAGES OF SPRING SOWING

Ordinarily, if a farmer sows in the spring, he has his
old enemy, the weeds, to contend with. If the season be

54 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

damp and cloudy, the alfalfa may not grow fast, but
weeds will. Therefore, June may see him mowing to
retard a rampant growth of weeds instead of gathering
a profitable cutting of prime hay. It is not improbable
that he may be doing the same in July or in September,
thus losing a whole season. Again, the spring prepara-
tion comes when the farmer needs to be working his
corn and potato land ; hence he is likely to slight or neg-
lect the careful preparation of the alfalfa ground and so
do a poor job, with, in such cases, the usual result of a
*'poor stand." Then too, the frequent rains interfere
with regular disking and harrowing and the weeds may
obtain a start the farmer cannot check. In most cases
fall sowing means three cuttings the following year. In
many instances spring sowing means no crop the first
season, although better farming will gain a September
crop, while the best farming, with no weeds, may give
two if not three crops; not heavy ones, perhaps, but of
no inconsiderable value.

Commenting on spring sowing in the more northern
states, Henry Wallace, editor of Wallaces' Farmer, says :

''Our own experience in growing alfalfa both in Ne-
braska and Iowa has taught us that it is a waste of time
and labor to sow in the spring. If sown in the spring
without a nurse crop, it will have to be mowed twice,
probably three times, to keep down the weeds, and even
then it will not be in as good condition as if a crop of
early corn or even oats was taken off, and the ground put
in fine condition and seeded in August.

'Tn 1904 we sowed in the spring 250 acres of alfalfa
on our Nebraska farm, and some twenty or thirty acres

SOIL AND SEEDING 55

of it was washed in ridges Dy a very heavy rain imme-
diately after. We reseeded the vacant spaces in the
fall and later could see no difference between the fall
sowing and the spring sowing. We did the same thing
on one of our Iowa farms, sowing in the spring and
mowing three times. Another piece was sowed in
August. The August sowing was much better than the
spring sowing. It should be said, however, that the land
was richer and the difference was therefore not all due
to the time of sowing. So long as Kansas farmers con-
tinued to sow their alfalfa in the spring they had but par-
tial success, owing to the fact that Crab grass and other
grasses will come up in the early fall and smother out
the spring sowing. By using some other crop the first
part of the season, then putting the land in fine condition
in the month of August or even by September ist, an
alfalfa crop can be started which will have a strong
enough growth to smother out the weeds the next spring.
"We don't know that we would insist on this so
strongly for northern Iowa and Minnesota, but certainly
from the latitude of the Northwestern railroad in Iowa,
south, and corresponding latitude in other states, we
would abandon spring sowing and sow alfalfa on well
prepared ground in August. We would not, however,
plow the ground for this fall sowing, but put the soil in
first-class condition for a spring crop, then use a disk
and harrow for the fall preparation."

SEEDING BY DRILL OR BROADCAST?

Here too, there is a variety of opinions, all based on
experience. Those who object most to drills may have

56 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

used poor implements, with feeding gears not well regu-
lated, or possibly they have not known how to use the
drills. Many who object to the broadcast method have
had little training or skill in it. It is reasonable to sup-
pose, however, that given soil in fine tilth, and a good
drill rightly adjusted, there will be a more even, and
hence a more economical distribution and a better and
more uniform covering of the seed. It is also claimed that
drilling secures a more uniform distribution of soil moist-
ure. The general opinion is that by sowing with a drill,
properly regulated, one can safely use five pounds less of
seed per acre. Some alfalfa raisers use a wheelbarrow
seeder ; others use a kind of swing seeder strapped to the
sower's body; still others, who have had training in the
old-fashioned method of broadcasting, declare it the best,
but the experiment stations of practically all the states,
and most up-to-date farmers, favor the use of the press
drill. There are now on the market different types of alfalfa
seeders which can be attached or are already attached to the
ordinary grain drill, and that will distribute the seed in any
desired quantities per acre with broadcast effect or leave it
in drill rows as may be preferred. At the Kansas Experiment
Station success has followed broadcasting, and cross-drilling
gave no particular advantage.

HOW MUCH SEED TO THE ACRE?

Reports of seed sown, varying from six to sixty
pounds to the acre, indicate much ignorance of the nature
of the alfalfa plant; or a great recklessness and extrava-
gance. Twenty pounds to the acre, if all seeds

SOIL AND SEEDING 57

germinated, would mean 2,500,000 to 3,000,000 plants,
whereas a stand of 500,000 is ample. Most of the experi-
ment stations favor twenty to thirty pounds to the acre,
although several experts at these stations insist that
fifteen pounds of clean, germinable seed to the acre is as
much as should be sowed. Even if these all grew it
would give nearly 44 plants to the foot square of land, or
four to five times as many as would thrive after two years
old. Of course the quantity may depend upon a variety
of circumstances, such as the vitality of the seed, condi-
tion ct the surface soil, condition of the subsoil as to
moisture, the method of sowing, weather conditions at
the titne of sowing or immediately after, also the nat-
ural fertility of the soil and the bacterial life present, or
at least the conditions for propagating or sustaining
bacterial life. With land prepared by sowing a few
pounds of seed six months or a year preceding, with a
heavy application of stable manure plowed under six
months before, perfect soil preparation, normal moist-
ure, and clean seed, testing ninety per cent germinable,
there should be no need for more than ten pounds to the
acre. Disking that the field should have later will split
the crowns and many new stalks will be sent up ; so that
in a few years a square foot of surface will not accom-
modate more than six to ten robust, vigorous plants, and
having these the ideal stand has pretty nearly been
attained. One plant has been known to send out as
many as 360 branches from its single main root, re-
sembling in form a spreading bush. A successful
farmer in Geary county, Kansas, who has been raising
alfalfa for twentv vears. seldom sows more than six

58 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

pounds of seed to the acre and never more than ten. A
prominent Ohio farmer usually sows but ten, and never
over twelve or fifteen pounds to the acre, although he
has always introduced alfalfa bacteria into the soil one
or two years before ready to give it a full seeding. Of
strictly good seed, well cleaned, twelve pounds would
likely be too much rather than too little, other condi-
tions being right.

WITH OR WITHOUT A NURSE CROP?

The practice of sowing a nurse crop with alfalfa was
inaugurated when the nature of the plant was not as
well understood as now. It was also somewhat on the
theory too that '' a half-loaf is better than no bread." It
began when there was a good deal of doubt about
"getting a stand," and the farmer thought no doubt that
a crop of oats or barley would pay for the plowing even
if the alfalfa failed. Whik the practice is continued by
many, the prevalent later method is to provide no nurse
crop. Few who have abandoned the nurse crop have
returned to it. The alfalfa plant does not need protec-
tion from the sun, nor is it bettered by dividing any of
the soil moisture or fertility with those of another crop.
On the other hand, if alfalfa is sowed in the spring, it is
important that it obtain an early start in order that its
roots can quickly work their way down into the moisture
of the subsoil, against the dry days of July and August.
When a nurse crop of any vigor is removed the alfalfa
plants are likely to be found weak, spindling and with
little root growth ; the nurse crop also has taken up some
of the soil nitrogen needed by the young alfalfa; or if

SOIL AND SEEDING 59

the nurse crop is heavy and has lodged, there will be left
bare spots, where the alfalfa has been smothered out.

Cutting the nurse crop is likely to be attended with
no little damage to the tender alfalfa plants by trampling
their crowns into the ground, or by breaking them off.
Practically all the experiment stations favor sowing
alone. With few exceptions the second and third years
have brought heavier yields where no nurse crop was
used. The theory that the nurse crop will prevent the
weeds choking the alfalfa is apparently, as a rule, not
well founded. In the first place alfalfa should not be
sown on foul land, and in the second place proper disking
and hr.rrowing, at near intervals for four or six weeks
before sowing, will disturb or kill far more weeds than
can any nurse crop. Besides, the oats or barley sown as
a nurse will when cut leave weeds in good growth, or
dormant and ready to spring up as fast or faster than
the alfalfa. No nurse crop is ever used with fall sowing.
When ground has been thoroughly prepared for the
preceding crop, and then properly cared for, and made
ready for the alfalfa by the preliminary weed destruc-
tion, it will be found advisable to sow alfalfa alone, even
in the spring.

INOCULATING THE SOIL

It has been found where alfalfa shows thrifty vigor,
is making a good stand, and is at least two years
old, that on the roots are little nodules or wart-like pro-
tuberances. On fields where the alfalfa is unthrifty or
failing to make a good stand, examination will probably
fail to discover any of these nodules. Scientists tell us

60 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA ,'

that these nodules are the homes of bacteria, microscopic
vegetable organisms obtaining their sustenance from
the nitrogen of the air and the starch of the plant ; that
they collect much more nitrogen than they need, the
over-supply being taken up by the alfalfa, which, after
these nodules are formed and occupied, takes no more
nitrogen from the soil, but annually stores about its roots
more from the air, thus adding to the nitrogen supply
in the soil instead of taking from it as do all other farm
crops except the legumes. Each legume — clover, alfalfa,
cowpeas, etc. — has a distinct species of bacteria, or at
least bacteria with a distinct development, excepting,
as has been found, that Sweet clover (Melilotus alba)
and Bur clover {Medicago denticulata) develop the same
species as does alfalfa.

BUYING INFECTED SOIL

Several methods of preparing land for alfalfa by
introducing its peculiar bacteria have been suggested,
and practiced to some extent. Many farmers and experi-
menters have used with success infected soil upon their
lands; soil from established alfalfa fields, or that from
along the roads or creeks where the Sweet clover or Bur
clover has been growing. This soil is spread upon the
field or sown with alfalfa just before the seeding. If
the drill is to be used the inoculated soil is spread on and
harrowed in. If the seed is to be broadcasted, the
infected soil may be harrowed in with the seed. It is
better, however, to harrow this infected soil in thor-
oughly before seeding. Experiment stations recommend
an application of two hundred pounds of such soil to

SOIL AND SEEDING

every acre, but good results have been secured from
half that quantity. This will depend very much upon
the nature of the soil, and the subsoil especially. Many
fields seem to have these bacteria waiting for the coming
of alfalfa. Land that has been well manured and con-
tains abundant humus, and land that is light and friable
will usually respond to the bacterial life attached to the
alfalfa seed. Most farmers who have established fields
will sell soil to their neighbors, which should be from
the top six or eight inches, and include roots, stubble and
earth. Both Sweet clover and Bur clover are found in
almost every neighborhood in the northern states, while
the latter is very general in the South.

Some alfalfa raisers make a business of selling and
shipping inoculated soil. Probably any experiment sta-
tion will ship small quantities to farmers within its state,
at about the cost of digging, sacking and delivering at
the railroad station. Therefore, if a farmer desires to
use it, little labor or expense is attached to doing so.
There is reason, however, to doubt the need of this
method in any of the western or central western states
where the suggestions mentioned in the first part of the
chapter are closely followed. No doubt there are advan-
tages in using it in most states east of the Mississippi
river, in order to hasten the development of the bacteria
and to make a good stand more certain. Preparation
one or two years in advance as already described, by a
light sowing of alfalfa seed for introducing its peculiar
bacteria, is less expensive, and requires less labor and car-
ries no risk of introducing the seeds of other clovers or
weeds, Most farms have enough weed seeds already.

62 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

DANGERS OF IXOCULATION BY SOIL TRANSFER

Touching upon the dangers possibly resulting from
inoculation by soil transfer a bulletin from the United
States Department of Agriculture has this to suggest :

''Satisfactory inoculations have been obtained by trans-
ferring soil from old fields on which the legume has
been grown, but experience has shown that there are
dangers incident to such methods of soil transfer which
it is wise to avoid.

''The source of supply of such soil should be definitely
known, and in no case should soil be used from fields
which have previously borne any crop affected with a
fungous disease, a bacterial disease, or with nematodes.
Where a rotation of crops is practiced, it is often difficult
to make sure of this factor, so that the method of soil
transfer is, under average circumstances, open to sus-
picion, if not to positive objection. Numerous animal
and plant parasite live in the soil for years, and are
already established in so many localities that it is mani-
festly unwise to ship soil indiscriminately from one por-
tion of the country to another.

" The bacterial diseases of the tomato, potato, and egg
plant, and the club-root, brown rot, and wilt disease of
the cabbage, all more or less widely distributed, are read-
ily transmitted in the soil ; while in the South and West
there are the wilt diseases of cotton, melons, sweet pota-
toes, cowpeas, and flax, and various nematoid and root-
rot diseases which might easily become a serious menace
over areas much larger than they now occupy if delib-
erately spread by the careless use of soil for inoculation
purposes. There are several insects and fungous

SOIL AND SEEDING 63

diseases of clover to be avoided, and various diseases of
beans and peas. There is also a disease of alfalfa, the
'leaf spot/ which is causing damage in some regions.
These are only a few of many diseases liable to be trans-
mitted in soils. The farmer should therefore be on his
guard. The danger from such sources is by no means
imaginary. The Department of Agriculture has had
specific cases of such accidental distribution reported,
and if the business of selling soil for inoculation is made
to flourish by farmers purchasing without question
'alfalfa soil,' 'cowpea soil,' etc., there is every reason to
believe that experience will demonstrate the folly of
such haphazard methods.

"Of scarcely less importance is the danger of dissemi-
nating noxious weeds and insect pests through this plan
of inoculation by means of soils. Even though weeds
may not have been serious in the field, the great number
of dormant seeds, requiring but a slight change in sur-
roundings to produce germination, is always a menace.
The enormous damage to crops caused by introduced
insects and weeds should convey a warning and lead to
caution. It is not the part of good judgment to view
the risk as a slight one.''

OTHER METHODS OF INOCULATION

There are two or three better ways of inoculating land
than by using a neighbor's soil. Some alfalfa raisers
recommend the sowing of alfalfa meal with the seed.
Another plan which appears reasonable and practicable
is for the farmer who wishes to introduce alfalfa to buy
alfalfa hay the year before and feed it to his live stock;

64 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

then haul the manure to the fields and plow it under for
the crop to precede alfalfa. It is claimed by those who
have done this that a satisfactory stand is well-nigh
certain, other conditions being met. It can be said, how-
ever, that some high authorities on this crop, men who
have experimented on many different kinds of soil and
who have succeeded under varying conditions, declare
that neither soil nor seed inoculation is necessary. It is
altogether probable that if a field has been well farmed
for a few years previous to the alfalfa-sowing, with
unusually good cultivation the preceding year, a heavy
application of stable manure plowed under at least five
months before, then given the proper preparation and
seeding, using seed raised in about the same latitude and
under similar conditions in which the new crop must
grow, and wnth seed testing ninety per cent germinable,
there should be little anxiety about the need of inocula-
tion. Of course old, worn-out land may require more
fertilizers, restoring to the soil not only necessary nitro-
gen that has been exhausted by other crops, but also the
potash and phosphorus. In eastern states it has been
found advantageous also to apply a very light top-dress-
ing of stable manure just before sowing the seed. If
lime is deficient, that must be applied. An examination
of any particular soil will usually be made without charge
by the state chemists, and the farmer may thus approxi-
mately ascertain just what the soil will need for alfalfa,
corn, or any other crop he may desire to raise.

KEEP ON TRYING

It is important to say to the eastern farmers, espe-
cially, that there is little difference between successful

SOIL AND SEEDING 65

alfalfa-growing and the successful growing of other
crops. Poor farming never brings big crops, nor will
poor land produce as big yields as the more fertile.
Failure to restore to the soil the necessary elements of
which it has been robbed means the same in New York,
Kansas, Virginia, or anywhere else. Every farm plant,
to prosper, must find in the soil, readily available, the
elements needed for its development. If a farmer finds
the soil lacking in elements needed for certain crops, he
should either apply the deficiency or not attempt
their raising. This is true of corn or wheat, cotton, or
tobacco, no less than alfalfa.

Alfalfa needs especially nitrogen, potash and phos-
phorus. The average virgin soil in the United States
contains enough of these to last several hundred years.
If there had been at all times an intelligent rotation of
crops, these chemical elements would be found in just as
large proportions in the soil that has been farmed a hun-
dred years as in the soil never cultivated. Hence, if
after trying alfalfa a man meets with failure, he should
not stop, and say, "Alfalfa won't grow *here'," but try it.
again immediately. If he discovers a seeming failure in
March or April, he should disk and harrow and as early
as possible sow about ten pounds of seed to the acre; in
many instances he will have to clip his alfalfa in about
six or eight weeks and can mow a crop of hay in Sep-
tember, or possibly two hay crops in the season. There
have been various cases reported where three hay crops
were secured the first season after such cultivation, when
the fields had been pronounced a failure in March.
Alfalfa may be sown on such ground as late as the first

66 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

of June if the weeds have been thoroughly subdued.
Or, if it has been sown in the spring and the weeds seem
to be overtopping it in July, mow close to the ground,
rake into windrows and burn. Then disk and harrow
thoroughly and sow again. In all probability there will
be something of a crop to mow early in September, with
a considerable autumn growth to follow. If it is not
desired to sow alfalfa in midsummer, disk this ground
and sow to rye or oats for pasture; then late in August
disk and put in readiness for September sowing. The
failiu'e may have been because the soil had not enough
bacteria, or favorable environment for the bacteria.
Some of the seed sowed at first undoubtedly ger-
minated and some bacteria were developed; enough
certainly to prepare the soil for the second sowing. It
is unwise after such a failure to go to another field or to
wait for another year. It is wiser to meet the conditions
at once, and vigorously persevere.

In reference to the application of lime, mentioned on a
preceding page, it should be noted that the later experi-
ments seem to indicate that it is better to apply smaller
quantities at shorter intervals than larger quantities at
longer intervals ; also that air-slacked lime is less caustic
than the quicklime, and not so liable, when recently
applied, to harm the young plants which may come in
contact with it, hence more of the former may be used
and with greater safety. Ordinarily quicklime is con-
sidered the most beneficial.

Bur Clover Pod

^lagnified six diameters

Yellow Trefoil Seed Pod

Magnified twelve diameters

Alfalfa Seed Pod

Magnified six diameters

^^^^^^^^#' '^ ' '^'-'"''

illHH^H

^H^^^"'''-''

^f^^l

■w^">''''"

"^B

^^^H^^^..?y , ■ 1

^B^^'^'*'-

Hi^^?'/-^ !<^

^B^i V > ' ~'''

^^1

l^^^£Sfl>

H^^^^^r'ik'

■^^■i,< f

~ "--* fl

Spotted Clover Pod

Magnified six diameters

CHAPTER VL

Cultivation

CLIPPING IS AN INVIGORANT

Strange as this title may seem it suggests a very
important means of securing a satisfactory stand. In fact
in some parts of the South, where the land has become
very foul, it is occasionally recommended to sow the
alfalfa in rows, eighteen inches apart, for regular culti-
vation the first season. After the second year the crowns
will have sent up so many stems that the surface of the
ground will be well occupied. Spurrier, in his work
referred to in Chapter I, recommended drilling in rows
and cultivating the first year. But it is better to get rid
of the weeds before tr3ang alfalfa. The cultivation here
recommended is clipping, manuring, disking and har-
row^ing. Frequently when alfalfa is sowed in the spring
it comes up weak and spindling. In such case clip it
just before ready to bloom, having the mower sickle set
rather high. If the growth is not very heavy, leave this
cutting on the ground; if quite heavy, remove it. The
field may need to be clipped again during the summer,
but the farmer can feel reasonably assured that he will
have a good stand the following spring. If the leaves
turn yellow, mowing is the remedy. If there is any sign
of the "spotted leaf" disease, the mower should be used

68 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

forthwith. Of course if alfalfa comes up strong, vigor-
ous, and free from weeds, it should stand until blossom-
ing is well begun and then be mown for hay.

It should not be supposed that the purpose in clipping
and allowing the clippings to remain on the ground is
primarily to make a mulch. It is to retard the weeds,
and as no other way equally convenient and economical
has presented itself, the young growths are mown and
left on the ground.

In many parts of the country Crab grass (Panicum
sanguinalc) is the plant or weed that most persistently
interferes with the prosperity of alfalfa during its first
year, and frequent mowing is the remedy most recom-
mended and resorted to, but there are growers who main-
tain that such treatment is not best. An extensive and ve*-y
successful grower in southern Kansas tells the author
repeated experience has demonstrated to his satisfaction
that the advice to mow alfalfa frequently during the first
summer may under some circumstances be quite wrong.
If the season happens to be wet, and there is a rank
growth of Crab grass, frequent mowing causes the Crab
grass to set in a close sod and smother out the alfalfa.
He says : "My practice has been, under these conditions,
to let the Crab grass grow with the alfalfa until matured,
before mowing. The young alfalfa will usually keep its
head out sufficiently to breathe, and will survive until the
Crab grass is matured and all is cut. If allowed to
mature, the Crab grass will not start a second time, and
the alfalfa immediately springs up and occupies the
ground. Where the Crab grass is very rank it may some-
times be blown down in spots and smother out some

CULTIVATION 69

alfalfa, but even under these conditions one will have a
much better stand than is possible by repeated mowings.
This is not mere theory, but has been proven correct by
frequent experience and close observation of the other
method during the same seasons." Something similar
may be said of Witch-grass (Panicum capillar e), which,
however, is less obnoxious than the Crab grass, because
of not having the habit of rooting at the joints.

In many parts of the country Crab grass (Panicum
sanguinale) is the plant or weed that most persistently
as to make burning in the spring seem the most feasible
means of getting rid of them, and fire is resorted to. Prof.
A. M. Ten Eyck says he has seen this done a number of
times without injury to the alfalfa crowns. He, however,
recommends disking after burning, to loosen the exposed
soil and leave the surface generally in a better condition.
Sowing additional seed on the ground before such disk-
ing may do much to improve and thicken the stand.

The editor of the Nebraska Farmer has been collecting
information on alfalfa culture from every section of the
United States for the past ten years, and as a result of
this work unhesitatingly advances the opinion that ''nine-
tenths of the failures with alfalfa have been due to fail-
ure or neglect to cut it as should have been done when
young. This is the law of alfalfa culture; it must be cut
down. And the man who has not the courage, morally
and physically, to use a mowing machine persistently had
best pass by alfalfa culture. It takes moral courage to
cut baby alfalfa; but it must be cut down to save it."

70 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

MANURING

A light top-dressing of manure after sowing, or, in
case of fall sowing, any time during the winter, helps to
conserve moisture as well as to give the growing plants
some nitrogenous food. Applying a top-dressing of
stable manure at least every second or third winter is
certain to prove profitable. If it contains coarse straw or
other litter, this should be raked and hauled off later, but
before the alfalfa grows too high, especially if the hay is
intended for the city market. Many successful growers
in Kansas, who claim to cut from five to seven tons of
alfalfa hay per acre in a season apply a top-dressing of
manure every winter. The highest yields reported from
eastern states are where this practice is followed. Some
experiment station men believe that where this is not done
the crop will after eight or ten years tend to impoverish
the land instead of further improving it.

DISKING

The foremost method of cultivation is with the disk
harrow, one of the most excellent farm implements ever
invented. Alfalfa sown in the fall is almost invariably
helped by disking the following spring, with the disks set
quite straight, so as not to cut the crowns but to split
them. It is usually well to follow this disking with a
tooth harrow, with its teeth set straight. Occasionally
in a dry summer the disk may be used to great advantage
after the second, and possibly the third, cutting also.
Many disk their alfalfa field every spring, and some
after each cutting, others do so only once in every two
or three years, owing to weather conditions and the con-
ditions of the alfalfa. In some instances the common
harrow is used instead of a disk.

CULTIVATIOIT 71

The disking has several beneficial effects. It splits
and spreads the crowns, causing more and consequently
finer stems to spring up, affording hay of the most
delightful quality, easily cured; it loosens the soil about
the crowns, conserves moisture and destroys the weeds.
There need be no fear of killing the plants if the disks
and the harrow-teeth are set straight and weighted or
otherwise adjusted to give direct and steady forward
movement. As an implement for the cultivation and in-
vigoration of an alfalfa field the disk harrow has no
equal, and its frequent use is by those who know it best
deemed quite indispensable.

RESEEDIXG

If it is a question of reseeding the whole field, the
problem is simple. In that case disk and harrow the
ground and sow half as much seed as was sowed at first.
But to restore bare spots is more difficult; the young
plants from the reseeding in these spots will be shaded
by the larger growth about them, and such reseeding
seldom gives the desired results. There is no doubt that
very many fields are given up as failures and inferior
crops planted in them, when a thorough disking would
have renewed the growth, saved a crop, and, what is more
important, a stand of alfalfa. Many reports have come
to the writer of fields that had little sign of life the first
of March, yet when thoroughly disked, cross-disked and
harrowed, surprised the neighborhood by showing in
two weeks a strong growth.

Some wishing to be on the safe side, have sown a
little seed after this heavy disking and harrowing, but
many of them have reported an entire loss of^the seed,

72 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

as the plants from the previous sowing came up so thick
as to choke out those from the later seeding. In some
states a common plan of thickening a stand is to let the
third crop ripen seed, and then about the last of Septem-
ber disk and harrow the seed into the ground where it
grew. This frequently saves the stand and adds many-
years to its life. But where a field begins to fail after a
third year it is usually better to plow it up and raise one
or two crops of corn, a crop of oats or of millet, and
then reseed.

ALFALFA UNDER IRRIGATION

The greatest yields of alfalfa are produced by irriga-
tion. Reported yields of six or more cuttings, aggregat-
ing eight to twelve tons per acre each year, are almost
invariably, yet not always, from districts where irrigation
is practiced. It is claimed by experiment station experts
from the irrigation states that the tendency is to use too
much water; too much at a time and too often. The
general recommendation is to irrigate thoroughly before
the ground is plowed or disked, and not again till
the alfalfa is about four inches high. Then again a week
before each cutting. It has been found that old alfalfa
fields do not need as much water as new fields, the alfalfa
roots seeming to find moisture and bring it to the surface.

It is insisted that the surface must be perfectly
smooth to keep water from settling into low places and
smothering the plants. Some farmers do not irrigate for
the second crop if as much as two inches of rain falls
after the first mowing. Others claim that old fields do
not need flooding for the second crop even if there has
been no rainfall after the first cutting.

CULTIVATION 73

Wilcox in his "Irrigation Farming"* says : "The
critical time with alfalfa is the first six weeks of its
growth. Flooding during this period is quite certain to
give the plants a backset from which they seldom fully
recover before the second, and sometimes not before the
third year, and it is not often in the arid states that rain
falls with sufficient frequency to dispense with the neces-
sity for irrigating the plants while small. By soaking
the earth from thirty-six to forty-eight hours before
seeding, however, the plants will make vigorous growth
until they are ten to twelve inches high, after which they
may be irrigated with safety.

"When alfalfa has become established, a single copious
irrigation after each cutting will ordinarily be found suf-
ficient. Irrigation before cutting is undesirable, because
it leaves the earth so soft as to interfere with the move-
ment of machinery and loads. It also makes the stalks
more sappy, and, while they will retain the leaves better,
there is more difficulty to be experienced in the curing
at harvest time; and taken all in all, we much prefer to
irrigate after each cutting. In Colorado we cut alfalfa
three times and often four times in a season, hence the
stand gets as many irrigations. Some people irrigate
very early in springtime, before the crowns have awak-
ened from their hibernal rest, but this practice is not
right. The chill of the water in very early spring is not
conducive to quick growth and may often retard the
plants in getting an early start. We do not irrigate
prior to the first cutting unless the season is particularly
dry and the plants seem to actually demand water. We

* " Irrigation Fanning," by Lute "Wilcox : 314 pp. Orange Judd Company,
New York.

74 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

irrigate late in the fall and apply a top-dressing of light
barnyard manure, which is found to be of great service
in several v^ays."

INFL.UEXCE OF IRRIGATION UPON COMPOSITION

I find no report of experiments published by any sta-
tion in which the influence of irrigation upon alfalfa hay
is made a special study, but Bulletin No. 80 of the Utah
station contains a great deal of information along this
line relative to grain crops, potatoes, and mixed grasses.
In summing up the results of the experiments, the fol-
lowing conclusions are

''Heavy irrigations increase the percentage of weight
of the heads of plants ; light irrigations increase the rela-
tive weight of leaves.

''Irrigation modifies definitely the composition of
plants and plant parts ; the seeds are affected more than
any other plant part.

"The percentage of protein in corn kernels was in-
creased from 12.05 to 15.08, as the amount of irriga-
tion decreased; in oat kernels from 14.07 to 20.79; ^^
wheat kernels from 15.26 to 26.72. In all these seeds
the fat and nitrogen-free extracts were increased by lib-
eral waterings.

"Increased irrigations increased the starch content
and decreased the protein content of potatoes.

"The water in plants is somewhat dependent on the
water in the soil.

"The proportion of ear corn to stover increased regu-
larly with the increased application of water.

"The percentage of grain in the wheat crop increased
with increased irrigations.

CULTIVATION

''The yield of wheat increased up to thirty inches of
water.

"Crops in an arid district require a greater number of
pounds of water for one pound of dry matter than in
humid cHmates."

The experiments cited do not include alfalfa, yet the
results with other crops would indicate that the percent-
age of protein in alfalfa hay may be less where the crop
is grown by irrigation than where it is grown by dry-
land farming. The composition of the hay, however,
will depend upon the quantity of water supplied to the
crop and not upon the method; that is, alfalfa which
receives as much natural rainfall as other alfalfa would
receive by irrigation, would be similarly affected in com-
position, and from the experiments with grains reported
in the bulletin noted, it would appear that with the appli-
cation of large quantities of water the percentage of
protein is decreased; yet, the yield is increased, and
although the feeding value of the crop may be a little
less, the quantity may be greater, due to large applica-
tions of water.

WIDE VARIATIOXS IN CONTENT

Professor Ten Eyck compiled from their station
bulletins the following figures on the composition of
alfalfa hay in four different states:

Bulletin
Number

Protein

Carbo-
hydrates

Fat

Number of
Analyses

New Jersey

148
39
61

114

Per Cent

15.»4
17.36
9.22
11.89

Per Cent

38.97
36.71
43.25
41.03

Per Cent

3.82
1.65

.97

.66

Utah

Kansas

76 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

On this showing he remarks :

''Although it was not definitely stated, I take it that the
Colorado and Utah hay were grown by irrigation, while
the New Jersey and Kansas hay received no irrigation.
It will be observed that while the percentages of protein
and fat in the Utah samples are low, the percentage of
carbohydrates is high; yet the Colorado samples grown
under irrigation show a larger percentage of protein
and fat than the Kansas samples grown without irriga-
tion. The crude protein often varies in quantity accord-
ing to the stage of maturity of the alfalfa when it is cut
for hay, as shown by experiments at the Kansas station,
and described in Bulletin No. 114.

"The general conclusion may be that the protein con-
tent of alfalfa hay will decrease to some extent, accord-
ing as the supply of water furnished the crop is increased ;
that is, by supplying the right quantity of water, a
better quality of hay may be grown by irrigation than is
often grown in humid climates in soil which receives only
the natural rainfall. From what I know of the Colorado
and Utah stations, I would judge that the quantity of
water supplied at the Utah station was much larger than
that supplied at the Colorado station. At the Colorado
station the supply of irrigation water is often limited,
and hence, the larger percentage of protein and fat which
appears in the samples of hay grown and analyzed at
that station.'*

The annual report of the secretary of agriculture
(1904) says that at the Utah station a series of co-oper-
ative experiments is in progress to determine the water
necessary, and the most favorable method of application,

CULTIVATION

to insure a maximum yield of alfalfa, and also experi-
ments to determine the minimum application of water
required to secure a crop. ''It has been found that abun-
dant irrigation throughout the season, 6i inches of water
being applied, gave a yield of 6.2 tons per acre, while
four irrigations in the early part of the season with only
25 inches gave five tons per acre, showing that beyond a
certain supply the excess is wasted."

A. S. Hitchcock, in United States Farmers' Bulletin
No. 2 1 5, speaking of the Utah experiment just mentioned,
says that where the supply of water is limited a much
less quantity than is ordinarily used will produce paying
crops. The minimum quantity to produce a crop of
alfalfa, and the time at which the water should be applied,
depends upon the soil and climatic conditions. Below are
results of experiments in 1903, by the Utah station :

WATER REQUIRED BY ALFAIiFA; QUANTITY AND DATE
OF APPLICATION

Date of each irrigation and quantity of water applied

First

June 16
June 29
June 16
June 29
June 15
June 20
July 8
June 20
June 15
June 16
Jiuie 23
.June 16
June 23
.June 16

Acrein.

3.360
5.970
5.070
7.020
5.030
6.774
12.490
8.303
6.320
6.2.T0
6.2.T0
6.2.50
6.610

Second

July 29
July 29
July 8
July 8
July 3
July 8
Aug. 19
July 6
July 6
June 23
July 7
July 7
July 7
July 7

Acrein.

3.359
3.359
5.036
5.036
5.100
6.694
12..506
8.352
6.248
4.280
6.220
6.220
3.720
3.720

Third

Aug. 19
Aug. 6
Aug. 19
Aug. 1
Aug. 19

Aug. 19
Aug. 1
June 30
Aug. 15
Aug. 6
Aug. 15
Aug. 6

Acrein,

3.359
5.003
5.002
5.036
6.682

8.362
6.248
5.705

6.2:)0

6.7.50
3.2.50
3.750

Fourth

Aug. 24

Aug. 29
July 7
Aug. 31
Aug. 31
Aug. 31
Aug. 31

Acrein.

5.002

6.2;50
a5.230
6.2.50
6.2.50
3.7.50
3.750

Total
Water
applied

Acre in.

6.719
12.688
15.109
17.058
20.168
20.150
25.002
2.5.017
25.066
61.46.5
24.970
25.470
17.330
15.200

aThis plat was given 5 inches of water on each of the following dates: July
14, July 22, July 28, August 4, August 17, August 25, August 31, September 8.

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

DATE OF HARVEST AND YIELD OF HAY

Date of harvest and yield of hay at each cutting

Total

yield of

plat

Calcu-
lated

First

Second

Third

yield
per acre

June 26....
June 26....
June 26....
June 20....
June 26....
June 26....
June 26....
June 26 ....

Pounds

264
177
261
204
191
175

99
224

176 1-2
170 1-2
147
105
112 1-2

Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 12....
Aug. 10....
Aug. 10....
Aug. 10....
Aug. 10 ....
Aug. 10....

Pounds

501-2
101

68 1-2
108 1-2

85 1-2

44
140

177 1-4
136 1-2
141

112 1-4
106

'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.".'.'.'.'.

Pounds

"1201-2
73 3-4
61
46
35

Pounds

314 1-2
278

329 1-2
312 1-2
276 1-2
249
155
143
364

474 1-4
380 3-4
349

263 1-4
253 1-2

Tons

3.145
2.780
3.295
3.125
2.765
2.490
1.550
1.430

June 26....
June 18 ... .
June 18....
June 18....
June 18....
June 18....

OcV.'ie".!""

Oct. 16

3.640
6.243
5.017
4.598
3.468
3.340

"It will be observed that the maximum crop was pro-
duced by applying plenty of water throughout the grow-
ing season. However, it is also to be noted that a much
less quantity of water, when applied at intervals of three
or four weeks, produced a fair crop. Fifteen and 17
inches of water applied in this way produced more than
half as much as 61 inches applied at frequent intervals.
Furthermore, three irrigations of 15 to 17 inches pro-
duced about the same results as the same amount applied
at four irrigations. In applying irrigation water to
fields it is necessary to saturate the soil to a reasonable
depth. All the water that drains off beyond the amount
required for use is lost to the crop. It is not necessary
to apply water again until the crop has removed a large
part of the available supply."

'H
t«

>»

la
<

■J f

;#.-^.

CHAPTER VIL

Harvesting

CALLS FOR INTELLIGENCE AND PAINSTAKING

Considerable space in this volume is devoted to the
discussion of soil and seeding, but their importance can-
not well be over-estimated. Really the whole subject of
alfalfa might well be treated under the two heads,
''Seeding" and ''Harvesting," so very inclusive are these
two phases of the subject. Without careful seeding one
cannot have a crop to harvest, and without careful har-
vesting he might almost as well not have a crop. Both
call for intelligence and painstaking farming, and much
patience and hard work. But the rewards of these vir-
tues and labors are heavy yields from the most valuable
forage plant. If it is worth nine times as much as tim-
othy, it can well demand a little more time and labor than
the average crop.

GREAT VALUE OF LEAVES

The first point to accentuate as we approach the sub-
ject of harvesting is the preeminent value of the leaves.
These contain from seventy-five to eighty per cent of the
protein of the whole plant, that valuable compound that
goes to produce milk and meat. It has been estimated
that a ton of properly cured alfalfa leaves is equal in pro-

8o THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

tein to 2800 pounds of wheat bran; and when it is also
estimated by careful observers that the loss of leaves in
harvesting, even under favoring circumstances, ranges
from fifteen to thirty or more per cent it is readily seen
that the harvesting is an important part in alfalfa hay-
making.

WHEN TO CUT

For the best hay the cutting should begin when the
alfalfa is about one-tenth in bloom. Of course, if the
acreage is small, calling for but one or two days' cutting,
it might stand without particular harm until a fifth or.
fourth was in bloom. Cutting should be completed, if
possible, by the time one-half is in bloom, as after that
it is cut at a loss of leaves. As they have more experience
the tendency among farmers is to cut alfalfa earlier than
had before been believed at all desirable, and some
experienced growers and feeders now insist upon cutting
just before the blossoming stage is reached.

Experiments seem to show that horses like the hay that
has been cut when at least half in bloom, or later, better
than do other stock. For sake of the after effects on the
plant, it is highly important that the first cutting be made
in the early bloom, as, if it is delayed, the second crop
starts more slowly and gives a lighter yield. Frequently
a short delay in cutting the first crop means that the field
will produce but two crops instead of three or four. So
important is this that Prof. H. M. Cottrell declares that
he has found it profitable to cut the first crop of a season
in earliest bloom even if it were to be injured by being
rained upon, or in fact entirely lost.

HARVESTING 8 1

MOST PROTEIN IN EAKLY CUTTINGS

The Utah experiment station found by a feeding test
that the early cut alfalfa was worth far more than any
later cutting. It reported :

stage of Growth

Hay worth, per ton

Beef, lbs. produced

TVTien MO in bloom

When in full bloom

$5.35
4.90

4.35

706
562

When 1-2 of blooms

have fallen

490

The Kansas station found the protein content to be :

stage of Growth Protein content

When I- ID in bloom 18.5 per cent.

When 1-2 in bloom 17.2 '' "

When in full bloom 14.4 " "

CONSTANT WATCHFULNESS DEMANDED

In humid regions, the alfalfa farmer at the time of
the first cutting often finds himself in a trying position.
The value of the leaves demands early cutting, and
this may be just when it is likely to rain with great
frequency. He knows that a wetting will injure his
hay, and that this results in more or less loss of some of
its most valuable parts from the hour of cutting until it
is thoroughly cured. The Colorado station reports that
alfalfa hay left out for fifteen days after cutting and
rained on twice, lost 26.1 per cent of its feeding value.
Hay left out for seven days and having only one light
rain, lost 10 per cent. Another lot left out three days,
without rain, lost 5 per cent. Wetting delays the cur-
ing, and by the washing the hay loses much sugar, dex-

\£0SO

82 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

trill and other soluble matters, and also develops fungi.
However, the only thing to do is to cut, exercising good
judgment of course as to the amount each day.

LOSSES IN CURING

Headden founds at the Colorado station, that in an
average alfalfla plant the stems amounted to forty to
fifty per cent of the weight, while with very leafy, small-
stemmed plants the leaves sometimes form more than
sixty per cent of the entire weight. The leaves were read-
ily lost if the hay was not handled carefully. He con-
cluded that the minimum loss from the falling off of the
leaves and stems in careful haymaking amounts to from
fifteen to twenty per cent ; and in cases where conditions
have been unfavorable, as much as sixty or even sixty-
six per cent of the entire dry crop is lost. Stated in an-
other way, with the best of conditions, and with great
care, for every 1,700 pounds of hay taken off the field,
at least 300 pounds of leaves and stems are left scattered
on the ground, "and, in very bad cases, as much as 1,200
pounds may be left for each 800 pounds taken." A
study of these facts should induce the careful haymaker
to use all possible skill in curing alfalfa, and they show
that it will be profitable to expend more than the usual
amount of labor in saving the leaves, considering that
they are worth, pound for pound, nearly four times as
much as the stems.

HARITCSTING IN HUMID REGIONS

Ordinarily, it is not well to cut alfalfa immediately
after a heavy rain, because the wet ground will operate
against proper curing. Begin cutting in the morning,

HARVESTING ^^3

when the clew is well off. If the weather is fair, the ted-
der ought to follow about two hours behind the mower.
It is a mistake to think that the sun is the great curing
agent. Too long exposure to the sun makes the curing
all the more unsatisfactory, besides drying the leaves in
such a way that they crumble and drop off.

Aslong as alfalfa remains "alive" w^ater will be exhaled
from the surface of the leaves and be pumped constantly
from the stalks in a natural way much as though they
were still standing. On the other hand, if newly cut
alfalfa is spread too long in hot sunshine, the leaves are
scorched to such an extent that transpiration of moisture
from pores becomes impossible. Hence, that in the stalks
can only escape by simple evaporation, which is very
slow. By this means much undesirable, in fact harmful,
moisture in the hay is brought to the barn or stack,
although the leaves of the hay are dry and crisp.

As J. E. Wmg has well said in his bulletin (Bui. No.
129 prepared for the Pennsylvania department of agri-
culture), "there is a principle to be observed in making
alfalfa hay that applies to making hay from all clovers.
If it can be so managed that the leaves are not at once
burned and dried to powder, the moisture from the stems
is the more easily removed. Leaves are natural evapo-
rators of sap ; stems are not. Therefore, while the leaf
has yet pliancy and some semblance of its natural condi-
tion, it is most efficiently carrying away the sap of the
stem, but when it is dried up it no longer aids in drying
the plant at all. Therefore, the best hay in all respects
is made partly in the shade, in loosely turned windrows,
or in narrow cocks."

84 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Two or three hours behind the tedder start the rake
and keep it going regardless of the noon hour, and unless
the hay is very heavy it may be put into small cocks, this
to be completed before the dew forms. In humid regions,
hay is cured best and with greatest safety by the use of
hay-caps, and these should be put on the cocks also
before the dew forms, and removed each morning. The
hay may be left in these cocks for four or five days, as
found necessary, and then stacked or stored in the barn.
This may not follow, however, unless the weather is
favorable. Many prefer to leave the hay in the wind-
rows until the second morning, turning them by hand or
otherwise before noon and putting into cocks in the
afternoon, letting these stand for two or three days. If
it is left in the cocks over three days, they should be
moved or the plants under them will be smothered. All
agree that alfalfa should not lie in the swath over two or
three hours. Most who have ever used a tedder like it
if the alfalfa is less than half in bloom. If half or more
in bloom, the tedder may cause the breaking off and loss
of many leaves. Most experiment stations recommend
that the hay be put into small cocks on the day of the
cutting, if the weather is at all fair, not risking it in the
windrows over night. It is a fact that cocked green
alfalfa, even without caps, will shed much rain, while
when fairly well-cured it will not do so.

A Colorado farmer reported that he started the mower
one morning as soon as the dew was off, followed it with
the tedder one hour later, and with the rake one hour
behind the tedder ; he kept a force of men only two hours
behind the rake putting the alfalfa, yet quite green, into

HARVESTING 85

small cocks. These stood through two days of heavy
rain. Later the cocks were opened and found to be
unharmed, and after one day the hay was put into stacks
in excellent condition. This was a somewhat unusual
circumstance, surely, and might not often occur in a
climate less dry than that in some parts of Colorado.

A grower in southern Kansas, however, who harvests
about one thousand tons of alfalfa per year, and is work-
ing with it nearly every day from the second week in
May until November 10, insists that alfalfa, under the
same conditions of rainfall, is much easier to save in fair
feeding condition than red clover. He finds the side-
delivery rake especially excellent for turning over the
green or wet windrows to the sun and air with the least
loss of leaves, and cured thus, after being wet, the nat-
ural color is better preserved. "That alfalfa hay has a
higher feeding value than almost any other, even when
saved under the most unfavorable circumstances, should
be impressed upon the inexperienced."

THE USE OF HAY- CAPS

Any man who goes into the business of raising alfalfa
anywhere in the rain belt cannot well afford to ignore
hay-caps as a part of his equipment. Comparatively the
cost is slight and the trouble of using them small con-
sidered in the light of their great utility, although the
expense, and the use and care of them may at first blush
appear to be quite formidable. American haymakers
do not seem to appreciate the bad effect of dew upon the
color and aroma of all kinds of hay. Prof. F. H. Storer
in his ''Agriculture" (Vol. Ill, p. 559) says: ''One

86 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

advantage gained by the use of hay-caps to protect the
cocks during the night, is that they hold in the raked-up
warmth, and keep the hay from coohng off. Thus it
happens that the hay not only improves a little as to dry-
ness during the night, but is all ready to dry rapidly
when the cocks are again exposed to the air and sun-
shine, on being uncovered in the morning. All this as
a normal and constant benefit, to say nothing of the
advantages derived from the caps in case light rains, or
even heavy rains, should fall before the cocks are again
opened. The caps keep dew from settling upon the hay,
moreover, and thus prevent the loss of aromatic matters
that would result if the dew were to dry off from the
hay."

*'With regard to the exclusion of dew, it is not alone its
power to carry off aroma that should be considered.
When dew ^falls' it must tend to carry with it any parti-
cles of solid matter that may happen to be in the air from
which it is deposited, and, in this way the spores of fungi,
such as would cause the hay to mold, are put upon it. It
can scarcely be questioned that many of the organisms
deposited with the dew are likely to promote hurtful
decomposition, especially in case the hay should remain
or become damp, and the less of these organisms that
infest the hay the better it will be."

When the farmer considers that a ton of well-cured
alfalfa hay is worth about as much as a ton of wheat
bran, he ought to see that it is profitable to protect it
from the rain and the dew. He would scarcely hesitate
to provide suitable covering if he had several tons of
bran in the field exposed to the elements. Hay-caps will

HARVESTING S7

soon pay for themselves by the finer quality of the hay
they assure, aside from the larger quantity of the best
grade that their protection guarantees.

Storer further says, ''there can be no question as to
the very great merit of hay-caps when properly used.
They are simply pieces of stout, cotton cloth of suitable
size, say 40 to 45 inches square as a minimum, (60 inches
square would be far better — Author) which are thrown
over the cocks when rain is imminent, or at nightfall.
These cloths may have wooden pegs or some sort of
weight attached to each corner to hold them in place ; the
pegs can be driven into the ground or pushed under the
hay, as seems most suitable to the size of the cock or con-
ditions of the weather. The porosity of the cotton cloth
hinders dampness from collecting beneath it at the top
of the cock which it covers."

Curing alfalfa in dry regions where the problems and
dangers of rainfall do not need any large consideration,
is attended with few of the difficulties which confront
the grower in a region of much humidity. In western
Kansas and Nebraska, and in Texas and other states
where summer rains are somewhat infrequent, the
mowers start at the beginning and do not stop until the
field or fields of alfalfa are all in the swath. The rakes
follow close behind, frequently the side-delivery rake,
and then the gathering implement, usually designated as
a "go-dtvil," keep only about a half -day behind, drag-
ging the cured hay to the stack or rick where the horse-
fork lifts and carries it to the center of the stack, to be
distributed and placed by men with pitchforks. The
market and feeding value of hay so cured and gathered,

88 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

is deemed by some authorities as not the highest. Curing"
in the windrow alone is hkely to be a mere drying (per-
haps too rapid drying) of one side of the exposed
portions. Alfalfa should cure successively in the swath,
windrow, cock and stack or mow, to develop its greatest
value. The man who has so many acres that he cannot
cure it in this way might do better with fewer acres for
hay, and pasture hogs on the remainder, or use the land
for other crops. Still it is true that alfalfa even poorly
cured has no inconsiderable feeding value. Many farmers
in the West and Middle West claim to secure very good
hay by early following the mower with the tedder, this
with the rake, and then the ''buncher," letting the hay
remain in bunches over night and dragging it to the
stack the next day. Others take from the windrow to
wagons by a hay-loader, preferably one operated by a
belt.

After all is said and done, and regardless of thrift and
yield, it is unquestionable that the grower of alfalfa in
humid regions meets with difficulties in the matter of
satisfactory curing that in some years are almost or
quite disheartening, and of a character to which his
brother in arid territory is virtually a total stranger.
Curing in the two regions presents different problems,
with advantage all the time favoring the man in the
country of little rainfall.

Second and later cuttings are not so much endangered
by rains as is the first, and, hence, these are usually cured
in better condition. Notwithstanding this, virtually all
tests point out that the first cutting has more feeding value
and is better relished by all kinds of stock. Most farm-

HARVESTING «9

ers are agreed that it pays to cut every time the alfalfa
blooms, up to the last of September in the North, and
possibly a month later in the more southern latitudes.
A few have reported that they prefer to make but two
cuttings a year, claiming to realize a greater feeding
value by so doing; but it seems that the loss in leaves
and protein, together with the fact that live stock has less
relish for the more mature cuttings, makes frequent cut-
ting by far the most profitable.

To sum up, the points to be emphasized in cutting
alfalfa for hay, and its treatment immediately after, are:

Cut in early bloom.

Handle as little as possible.

Prevent its being wet after cutting.

Cure if possible partly in the swath, in the windrow, in
the cock and in the stack or inoz

Cut as often as it blooms, which will range from twice
in New England to nine times a year in southern Okla-
homa, southern California, Texas and Louisiana.

In a region of frequent rains protect with hay-caps.

HARVESTING FOR SEED

The first cutting should not be used for seed for three
reasons : First, if that cutting is delayed until the seed
has ripened, the second and third cuttings will be very
light, and in the extreme northern alfalfa territory there
may not be even a second. \ stronger reason is that
at the time of the first cutting, favorable weather is
likely to be much less certain and rains will interfere with
the stacking of the seed crop, which, to insure its best
value, must be put in the stack or mow without wetting.

90 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Another is that the seed pods at that season are not
usually so well filled and the proportion of fertile seeds
is less because the bees and other insects have not so
early in the season had time and opportunity to aid in
the poUenation.

Cutting should be done when the greater proportion
of the seeds are hard, but not sufficiently ripe to shell.
At this stage a majority of the pods are turned a dark-
brown color and the seeds are fully developed. Fre-
quently the cutting can be raked into windrows after two
hours if the weather is drying, and in two or three hours
more put into cocks and let stand for twenty-four to
forty-eight hours, as the weather may justify. It should,
however, be well cured and thoroughly dry when put in
the stack, or there is danger of heating, and stack-
heating seriously injures the vitality of the seed. It is
not uncommon, if extremely ripe, to leave the cutting in
the swath only an hour or a half -hour, then stack, and let
stand for autumn or later threshing. If allowed to
stand in the stack for about thirty days, the entire mass
goes through a sweating and curing process which makes
the threshing easier, while less of the seed is left in the
straw than would be if it had not stack-cured. In western
Kansas many seed raisers cut their seed crop with a self-
binder, put the sheaves in shocks the same day and thresh
in about ten days, or put it into a stack to await a con-
venient threshing time. They claim to secure 20 per
cent more of the seed in this way than if they cut with
the ordinary mower. Others cut with a mower having
a dropper attachment which leaves the alfalfa in small
bunches at the will of the driver, in the center of the

HARVESTING 9I

swath, and these are ''straddled" by the team and the
wheels of the mower in the subsequent rounds. These
bunches are left for two or three days and then stacked.
There is little, if any, danger from mold or spontaneous
combustion in stacks of alfalfa cut for seed, but there is
danger of the seed heating in the stack if stacked wdien
damp. If bright, clean seed is expected, the stacks must
be well topped with slough grass, or covered with tarpau-
lins or boards, or given other protection. It is better
still to put the alfalfa intended for seed into a barn.

One Kansas farmer in the western part of the state
reports that he used a self-binding harvester, shocked
the sheaves like those of grain, let them stand ten days
and then put in a mow, with no bad results.

YIELDS OF SEED

The yield of seed ranges all the way from two to thir-
teen bushels per acre, the normal yield in the seed regions
being four to eight bushels. It is threshed with ordinary
grain separators with seed attachments, although the
clover-huller is usually preferred. No threshing machine
cleans the seed satisfactorily or sufficiently, and a careful
recleaning is necessary. Fanning mills or seed-cleaners
are now made that will remove most weed seeds, seeds
of dodder, and all light-weight and probably infertile
alfalfa seeds. However, no raiser should by rights
thresh, to say nothing of marketing, the seeds of the
dodder or any other weed with his alfalfa; these should
be cut out of the field with scythe, sickle or knife a
month before the alfalfa is cut.

The threshed alfalfa straw is worth only about half as
much as the hay, yet it makes excellent feed for horses.

92 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

colts and calves. Or, if put into stacks of alfalfa of the
third cutting, in alternate layers, it may be fed to any
stock to good advantage, as it is relished quite as well
as ordinary third cuttings, notwithstanding its lower
feeding value.

THE THIRD CUTTING FOR SEED

Seed raisers in some instances, especially in Kansas,
use the third cutting for seed, claiming that the pods are
more uniformly filled and the seeds more generally fertile,
due to the assistance of the bees in pollenation. They
claim, too, that this cutting has fewer weeds and weed
seeds than its predecessors; also that they are thus sure
of two good hay crops, while often if they use the second
crop for seed, the third crop is hardly worth more than
the cutting. The only point left in favor of using the
second cutting for seed, where the farmer is confident of
a third, is that the protein value of the second is the
lowest, and hence its hay can better be spared than that
from any other cutting.

The raising of seed in the more humid eastern states
should not, generally, be attempted, as it will not only
interfere with obtaining full value in the hay crop, but the
less fertile soil will not produce as vigorous seed as will
the newer and richer lands west of the Missovn*i river.
At present the best seed for general use is produced
between that river and the Rocky mountains. Utah pro-
duces a hardy seed, but much if not most of it is raised
under irrigation, and, hence, at least theoretically, not
deemed best adapted for regions dependent entirely upon
soil moisture from rains.

Gathering an Alfalfa Crop in Page County, Iowa

Photograph by courtesy of Henry Field

||^^^^4?^

Alfalfa Harvesting Scene in Yellowstone County, Montana

H^^^^

Mast and Boom Stacker, with Six-Tined Jackson Fork

The mast is held in place by guy ropes from the top. Leading to the right
may be seen the rope to which is attached a team of horses. The base
of the derrick is in the form of sled runners, so that the whole
may be drawn along the stack by attaching a team

l&^ygl.

WSkesim.s-y.

^M^^.

;j«_^ • *mP

Wf i

^^MM|^^ £„ ^VM^HHH^^^^^^M

i -

" 'V^^HiHj^^^B

. ^.,

M' ,

'^H

A Derrick Stacker

with six-tined Jackson or California fork. The derrick is substantial, and guy

ropes are not necessary. Stakes driven into the ground around

the base hold the derrick in place

CHAPTER VIII.

Storing

CARE IN CURING

After all possible care has been taken in seeding, cul-
tivating and harvesting alfalfa, its feeding value may be
greatly impaired or quite lost by ignorance or careless-
ness in storing; that is, by stacking or putting it into
sheds or barns, or by baling it for market when in an
unsuitable condition.

The only path to safety in stacking or storing in shed
or mow is having the hay in proper condition for com-
pleting its own curing. The true medium for its curing
is air, not sun; the sun has done possibly more than its
share already. But good hay is not completely and
properly cured in swath, windrow and cock. If cured in
the windrow, the exposed parts are liable to be much
injured by the sun. Therefore the principle stands,
''Handle alfalfa green." It must be cut green, teddered,
raked and cocked or bunched while comparatively green,
and must not then be allowed to dry and parch to brittle-
ness. True, it must not be put into a stack so long as it is
possible to wring water out of the stalks. A constant
study should be to find the best method of getting the hay
into storage without loss of its natural color. The method
that will safely store it greenest will be the best to follow.

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Handled green the leaves are saved, and these constitute
from 50 to 75 per cent of the whole value.

PUTTING INTO WINTER QUARTERS

When (in regions of much humidity) the hay is
safely in cock, covered with hay-caps, and has had a few
days of curing, it is ready for permanent quarters.
Remembering that the hay after its drying has begun
should be handled as little as possible, the cocks have
been made small enough so that two men may lift them
bodily onto a wagon, if a wagon is used in the stacking.
From the wagon, the hay is lifted by a hayfork to the
stack. Or, more careful still, the farmer will use three
slings to each wagon, which are lifted by a hook to the
stack or mow. A sling is a heavy sheet the size of the
wagon hayrack. One is spread on the bottom of the
rack, another on top of the first one-third of the load,
and the other on top of the second third. These slings
are banded at the ends ; the ends are drawn together and
a third of the load lifted to the stack or mow, thus saving
in some instances a third more leaves than any other
method.

In arid and semi-arid territory, cocking and loading
on or off wagons are dispensed with by dragging the
rapidly dried hay directly to stacks built in the fields,
where the lifting into place is done with great expedition
by horse implements. A wheel-rake or "go-devil" is used
to take at once several cocks, bunches or a part of a
windrow to a nearby stack. Others use a rope to drag
one or more large cocks to the stack; or, if the hay is to
be taken from windrows, it may be put upon wagons with

STORING 95

a loader. The loader is an excellent implement for hand-
ling timothy and clover, but is apt to shake off a good
many leaves of alfalfa if the hay is very dry. The more
common sling now on the market is made of ropes, four
ropes the length of the hayrack and with ropes across
like a rope ladder, and used to handle one-third or one-
fourth of a load. Others are made like the carriers of a
threshing machine with slats and ropes.

STORIXG TS THE BARN

The barn is the best place for alfalfa if all conditions
are right. Cases of spontaneous combustion in stack
and mow make farmers fearful of using the barn, espe-
cially for the first cutting, which is always most difficult
to cure. There are certain conditions that must be
observed if this hay is to complete its curing properly
and safely in the mow. The bottom of the mow should
be elevated at least a foot from the ground, floored with
poles or joists, and they should be about two-thirds cov-
ered with boards or other material in such a way as to
provide numerous openings or air spaces of considerable
size. If the mow already has a tight floor, a part of the
flooring should be removed before the hay is put in.
Then a box or barrel should be placed in the center of
the space and lifted up as the filling proceeds. If the
mow is over thirty feet long, a second barrel should be
used; that is, an air shaft should be left in about each
fifteen to twenty feet. A layer of dry hay or straw sand-
wiched in about every four of five feet, as the mow fills,
can be used to much advantage. If the mow is large
enough in length and width, an excellent, safe plan is to

96 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

spread the first cutting over the entire bottom, filling up
to a height of four or five feet. The second cutting
may be placed over this, on top of a layer of straw, and
the third cutting over this. There is virtually no danger
from spontaneous combustion or from mold if this is
done, and the hay will be as bright and green and almost
as rich in protein in January as when harvested.

J. W. Berry of Jewell county, Kansas, member of the
board of regents of the state agricultural college, uses
this method and bales his hay in October for the city
markets, finding it in perfect condition. He puts his
hay into the mow green but not wet, direct from
the cocks, or windrows the day it is cut, in layers
about four feet deep, with the slightest possible loss
of leaves, no bleaching and no injury by dew. In 1905
he cut his alfalfa four times and stored the fourth
cutting on top of the three preceding. He says that
having an open floor and plenty of air from the out-
side, the hay can be put in the barn as described; that
it should not be tramped, and it will settle and cure per-
fectly. The bottom layer or first cutting may show some
dust when taken out if handled loose, but the color will
be good and it will bale in with the other cuttings and all
grade well. Hay cured in this way in 1904 graded
"choice" in the St. Louis market.

Spontaneous combustion does not occur very often,
but it is a possibility, and it is well to bear in mind that
hay may be put in the barn too green. Observation
teaches that it never takes place unless the hay has been
put in the barn while containing a large amount of mois-
ture, and piled too deep. Alfalfa and other clover hays

STORING 97

may safely be put in the barn when they contain not to
exceed 30 per cent of water. If, however, they contain
much more than this there is considerable danger, espe-
cially where large quantities are put together, as is the
case in large, deep mows and sometimes in large stacks.
A practical test which may be safely followed is to take a
handful of hay, twist it as hard as possible, and if no juice
can be wrung out of its stems, it is dry enough to be put
in the mow. Bunches of wet hay mixed with dry hay
have often caused combustion. Such should always be
discarded. It is poor policy to haul clover hays into a
barn after sundown, as at that time it absorbs moisture
from the atmosphere very rapidly.

It is a good plan for the haymaker to go into his mow
every morning while the hay is curing and observe the
conditions, but he should not, however, become alarmed
if he finds that the top of his hay is very damp. This
will always be the case, even if it was comparatively dry
when put in ; considerable heat develops during the night,
which in turn evaporates moisture. The following morn-
ing, when the air is cool, a large percentage of this,
especially if the mow is not well ventilated, is condensed
and settles back on the hay. If the moisture, however,
is excessive, it is a sfood plan to scatter a load of dry
straw over the top. This will absorb the moisture in
part, after which filling may be continued. In case a
load has been put in the barn too wet, it should be spread
to the outer edges, as there is much less danger of com-
bustion at these places than in the center In fact, the
greatest heat is always developed in the center, where the
so-called craters form, and from which moisture and

9^ THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

gases are given off as a result of heating and oxidation
below.

From the fact that spontaneous combustion cannot
take place until the water has all been evaporated, there
is no danger until three to four weeks after the hay has
been stored. During the first week or so, if the hay
heats to such an extent that there is danger of com-
bustion, it is well to open up the center as much as pos-
sible and allow some of the heat to escape. If, however,
the heating has continued much longer, it is dangerous
practice to open the hay at all, because all that is needed,
after the water has been evaporated, is air, or oxygen to
support combustion, and the mass will at once burst into
flames. Sometimes combustion takes place without
flames, in which case the center of the mow gradually
chars, leaving the hay there as black as charcoal, and
without value.

Professor Cottrell, discussing spontaneous combustion
(Kansas Bui. No. 114), says that all cases observed by
him have occurred in hay of the season's first cutting —
cut at a time when the growth was rank and the curing
most difficult. A period of wet, muggy weather in July
or August increases the danger, which in dry weather
seems much less. On account of previous trouble from
heating in the barn, he had four year prior to writing
stacked the first cutting out of doors and put only the
later cuttings in the barn.

LOSSES FROM STACKING

The Colorado station found that the loss in feeding
value from the hour of cocking to the hour of taking from

STORING 99

tlie stack was 12.4 per cent, while the loss in hay stored in
the barn was about 2.5 per cent. If we add to this the
stacked hay lost by exposure, it will easily reach more than
20 per cent under average conditions while in many cases
it would reach 40 per cent. This certainly represents an
enormous waste, and by preventing it a man with any
considerable area of alfalfa could soon save enough to
pay for a barn.

THE HAY SHED

After a barn the next best place for storing hay is a
shed with an adjustable or lifting roof. The ground
dimensions should be ample to allow the first cutting to
cover its floor and not be over five or possibly six feet
deep when first put in. The bottom of the mow should be
raised at least one foot from the ground, and the floor
should have at least a twelve-inch air space about every
three feet. Poles or joists covered with dry straw or old
hay make a good floor. Spread the hay over the entire
floor surface, on a layer of straw or other dry material.
Use barrels or boxes as recommended for ventilation in
the barn, and lower the roof until the second cutting. For
such a roof the covering should be of some such mate-
rial as ruberoid, and the rafters need not be he^vy, except
about every sixteen feet. Strong iron clamps can be
easily adjusted to the supports. When the second cut-
ting is ready, raise the roof, which should be in sections,
and put the second crop on top of the first. Follow this
plan for all other cuttings. If a shed with a stationary
roof is used, dry straw, or hay, or corn stover should be

lOO THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

put on top of each cutting to protect the alfalfa from
rain. Almost any kind of a shed or covered structure
is preferable to a stack.

CONDITIONS FOR STACKING

If the hay is to be stacked, there are also special condi-
tions that the experienced insist should be observed. This
is not to say that alfalfa hay stacked under conditions
quite different may not give fair results, and much
depends on the locality and the climate. However, the
result desired is palatable and nutritious hay and not such
as is moldy, stack-burned or dusty. Stacking the hay
directly on the ground is sure to mean a loss of some por-
tion of it. Elevate the bottom of the stack with poles,
timbers or other like material ; put straw at the bottom
and, preferably, build a rick rather than a round stack.
Start the bottom sixteen or eighteen feet wide and build
straight up instead of tapering or slanting the sides, as
alfalfa hay will not shed rain or snow water. If there is
much moisture and it is convenient to do so, use a layer of
straw or dry hay of some kind every five or six feet. Keep
the stack full in the middle, or a little higher than the
sides, and well tramped all the time. When the stack has
reached the. desired height, top it out with slough grass,
or dry timothy or prairie hay, or very green alfalfa, or
protect with tarpaulins or boards; the boards may be
nailed and chained together, lapped and weighted at
the corners, making a very satisfactory roof. If these
directions are followed, the losses will be kept at a min-
imum. The Kansas experiment station authorities say
that in an experiment made there an application of

STORING lOI

salt to the hay when being stored seemed to decrease, if
anything, rather than increase its feeding value. Lime
applied in stacking is claimed to have a beneficial effect in
preventing mold.

The raised bottom and layers of straw are useful ac-
cessories for the stack, shed or mow, while the barrel or
other ventilating contrivances should not be overlooked
in either sheds or mows.

STORING AS SILAGE

As land values increase and farmers and dairymen
come to more fully appreciate the worth of green feed in
winter, the silo grows in estimation. Eastern farmers
who keep cows or young stock of any kind use the silo
more or less, to conserve for winter the value of both
green grass and corn. Alfalfa makes an excellent silage,
but its peculiar quality of retaining its green food value,
as hay, when properly cured, makes its ensiling much less
a necessity. Alfalfa hay taken from the mow in Febru-
ary, green, appetizing and nutritious, falls little, if any,
short of serving the purposes of silage.

OFTEN PROFITABLE TO ENSILE THE FIRST CUTTING

However, it is not infrequently found that the first
cutting of alfalfa may be ensiled directly from the field
at a season when rains would prevent its proper curing
for hay. If this is done, it is important that the rakes and
wagons follow very closely after the mower, as even two
hours of sun exposure in the swath lessens its value for
silage. Men who have cut alfalfa during a light rain and

102 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

raked and hauled it directly to the silo have reported sat-
isfactory results. Others report having cut it in the
late afternoon and, the next morning, after a heavy rain,
raked and hauled it to the silo while dripping wet.
Therefore the farmer in the eastern and southern states,
in the Pacific Northwest, or even in the central states
may, on occasion, plan for the ensiling of his first cutting,
in the faith that it will come out in fine condition if his
silo is properly constructed.

SUGGESTIONS FOR SILOING

The Kansas and Colorado experiment stations recom-
mend that alfalfa for silage should be cut into lengths
of, say, two inches. Long alfalfa does not pack suffi-
ciently close in the silo, and when so stored the loss is
much more than if in short lengths. It should always be
heavily weighted and great care taken to pack it well at
the outer edges. Round silos are most approved because
their contents are more readily compacted. The points
urged by Professor Ten Eyck, of the Kansas experi-
ment station, are, (a) getting the alfalfa to the silo
quickly after mowing, allowing little, if any, curing; (b)
cutting the alfalfa into short lengths rather than storing
it whole; (c) packing it tightly, and weighting heavily
when all in. He says, however, that if the weather will
permit proper curing of the alfalfa, it will make more
valuable winter feed as hay than as silage.

BALING

The increasing general demand for alfalfa hay in the
city markets of the United States, away from the dis-
tinct alfalfa regions, has made finding a method of pre-

STORING 103

paring it for economic shipment of much importance.
The compressing of timothy and prairie hay has become
so general that alfalfa raisers and shippers are also fol-
lowing this method. The problem of saving the leaves,
and, at the same time, being able to market alfalfa green,
has been hard to solve. Baling it uncured meant mold,
and baling it when very dry meant loss of leaves and,
hence, loss in feeding and selling value. The Kansas
station a few years ago carried on a series of experiments
extending over several years from which the conclusion
was that the only safe procedure is to cure carefully in
the field, put in the stack or mow, and bale after the final
sweating — say thirty days. Most of the hay cured and
baled in the field was moldy or brown. It is possible,
however, that a more careful curing, the use of hay-caps,
letting it stand for several days in cock, baling, and then
storing in an open shed, the bales stacked on edge and
separated about every third layer by poles, rails or raft-
ers, might result in securing high-grade hay direct from
the field without stacking. Seemingly it will never be safe,
away from the semi-arid regions, to bale the first cutting
from the field; but the secret may yet be found of so
baling the second and third cuttings and obtaining prime
hay. Its doing is not likely to prove satisfactory, how-
ever, except in the drier portions of the alfalfa district
where large cocks of, say, 500 pounds may be made and
left standing for several days before baling. But baling
is not likely to be largely followed except in territory
where extensive areas are devoted to alfalfa. When
practically every farmer in the United States has his field
of alfalfa as he now has of corn, cotton or clover, the

I04 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA'

greater part of the product will be fed on the farm and
the surplus hauled direct to the local markets. Western
Kansas and Nebraska alfalfa raisers are having this
problem solved for them by the growing practice of
stockmen shipping cattle and sheep from the mountain
ranges to be fed or fattened where the hay is raised, and
hauled directly from the stack to the feed lots.

POOR STUFF

Hay dealers report that much of the baled alfalfa
shipped is poor stuff. They advise small bales, weighing
about sixty to eighty pounds ; about 27 to 36 inches long,
14 or 15 inches thick and 18 inches high when laid on
edge. They also recommend that in loading a car
the bales be placed on their edges instead of on the sides,
as they are less liable to heat. The problem of the city
hay dealer is to sell what he has received, with satisfac-
tion to the purchaser and profit to himself and to his
client. If he receives moldy, dead hay, with little protein
value, he is not able to please his customer, not able to
secure a good price, and hence, not able to please either
shipper or buyer. The farmer who raises and ships hay
and receives two dollars less per ton for it than his neigh-
bor, should learn by such money losses the necessity of
harvesting and storing his product properly.

A. S. Hitchcock says in Farmers' Bulletin No. 215, of
the United States Department of Agriculture, that the
baled hay for export to Alaska, Hawaii, and other trans-
oceanic points is compressed by the process known as
double compression, done with baling machines oper-
ated by electricity or hydraulic power. The hay obtained

STORING 105

by loosening the ordinary bale is compressed into square
or cylindrical packages of smaller and more compact
form than the ordinary bale. The hydraulic presses used
for making the round bales are similar to those used
for the cylindrical bales of cotton. The measurements of
the different types of double-compressed bales are about
as follows: Square, 15 by 18 by 38 inches, weight 160
pounds; square bale for Alaskan trade, 14 by 18 by 26
inches, weight 100 pounds; round bale, 2 feet in diam-
eter, 24 inches long, weight 145 pounds, or 36 inches
long, weight 260 pounds. The saving of space in transit
may best be understood by comparing the weight and
cubic contents of baled and compressed hay. The ordi-
nary bale occupies 140 to 160 cubic feet per ton, and
round bales 55 feet per ton. The most essential point in
loading new hay into a car is to see that it is not loaded
flat, that is, with the flat sides of the bale up. When
loaded in this way, with the smooth sides of the bales
together, no space is left for air and as a consequence the
hay not infrequently heats. A properly loaded car has the
edges or rough sides of the bales together. This allows
air space between the bales and always prevents danger
of heating.

A new machine is being introduced which makes ( from
the windrow if desired) a cylindrical bale, with a hollow
space lengthwise through its middle. This open space
must undoubtedly facilitate the curing of hay baled before
sufficiently dry. The machine has a capacity of four to
six tons per hour, makes a bale thirty-six inches long and
twenty inches or less in diameter, as desired, bound with
twine, and the hay can be eaten from the bale, with a

I06 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

minimum of waste, without untastening. This baler, if
it justifies the claims of its inventors, should be very use-
ful to those who grow alfalfa for marketing away from
the farm.

GRADING AND GRADES OF ALFALFA HAY

On account of the increasing demands for alfalfa hay,
and growth in the business of selling it in cities, dealers
have found that the establishment of some uniform and
generally accepted method of grading the different qual-
ities was a business necessity. As a result of this its con-
sideration was taken up by the National Hay Associa-
tion's committee on grades and upon the committee's rec-
ommendation the association in 1905 adopted the follow-
ing classification:

Choice Alfalfa — Shall be reasonably fine, leafy alfalfa,
of bright green color, properly cured, sound, sweet and
well baled.

No. I Alfalfa — Shall be coarse alfalfa of bright, green
color, or reasonably fine, leafy, of good color, and may
contain five per cent of foreign grasses; must be well
baled, sound and sweet.

No. 2 Alfalfa — Shall include alfalfa somewhat
bleached, but of fair color, reasonably leafy, not more
than one-eighth foreign grasses, sound and well baled.

No. 3 Alfalfa — Shall include bleached alfalfa, or al-
falfa mixed with not to exceed one- fourth foreign
grasses, but when mixed must be of fair color, sound
and well baled.

No Grade Alfalfa — Shall include all alfalfa not good
enough for other grades, caked, musty, grassy, or
threshed.

Lattice Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Cattle

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Lattice Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Sheep

Box Rack for Feeding Alfalfa to Cattle

CHAPTER IX

Pasturing and Soiling

PASTURING NOT ALiWAYS ECONO]MY

Its perennial nature and the reports of its wonderfully
productive and nutritive qualities might naturally lead
the farmer, without better acquaintance, to suppose that
with alfalfa he has perpetual pasture; that he will open
the gate to his live stock in the spring, send for the butcher
or buyer in October, and then winter in luxurious leis-
ure. But he finds that the easiest is not always the most
profitable way. Pasturing with any stock is an expensive
and extravagant method of gathering a valuable crop
from high-priced land. Where land is cheap and pasture
is wild, stock are not expensive help in gathering a cheap
crop ; but it is easily demonstrated that when land values
are high and a crop value is in a like altitude, man with
machinery can do the harvesting more economically than
can a cow, a steer or even a sheep.

ALFAIiFA A TENDER PLANT

In some respects alfalfa does not seem to be a natural
pasture plant. The stems are delicate, it will not thrive in
a hard, trampled soil, and the crowns when broken off
will not revive; if some of the plants bloom and drop
their flowers early in the season, they lose vigor and many
of them die. These peculiarities would at least indicate

I08 ' THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

that it should not be pastured at all until it has become esr
tablished, has its crowns well spread, has abundant stem^
and its roots have a strong start on their underground ca-
reer. Not an animal should be turned on an alfalfa field
until the second or third year if it is desired that the stand
endure for several years, nor should it be pastured too
early in the spring or too late in the fall. There should
be something of a growth left for winter protection.
Careful alfalfa raisers are known who pasture their older
fields, but never put on a full quota of stock until they
have cut over the field when the plants are first coming
into bloom. They insist that this cutting invigorates
and gives the plants new life. They then pasture quite
closely until some time in September, after which there is
time for some final growth for winter protection.

A GOOD SWINE PASTURE

A chief exception that most farmers insist on is that it
is an excellent pasture for pigs and, if it is not stocked
too heavily, its use for grazing young swine will not
largely decrease the yield of hay. Its marked protein
property seems to give to the pigs a superior growth of
frame and flesh. Farmers claim that pigs a few weeks
old turned into an alfalfa field derive almost their entire
living from it and leave the sows two weeks earlier than
other pigs, coming in September with a gain of from
ICO to 125 pounds, while the field has yielded its three
cuttings of hay. Of course, if too many pigs are grazed,
the hay yield will be less. But even here the question of
labor versus hay must be considered.

PASTURING AND SOILING lOQ

DANGERS TO CATTLE AND SHEEP

The greatest objection to pasturing alfalfa is its bloat-
ing cattle and sheep. Hogs and horses do not suffer,
although a Texas farmer writes that he lost some pigs
from something similar to bloat that he attributed to the
alfalfa. But this may be considered questionable, as thou-
sands have regularly pastured hogs and horses on alfalfa
with no symptoms of bloat. From hundreds of inquiries
sent out by the experiment stations, it is determined that
over ninety per cent of those who have pastured cattle or
sheep on alfalfa have losi one or more animals by doing
so, yet many report having pastured the same kind of
stock on alfalfa for years, regularly every season, with-
out loss. Careful investigations have been made with
the purpose of finding out why some have been immune
while others suffered. Since, in the cases of loss, only a
small proportion of the animals pastured are affected, it
may be inferred that much depends upon the nature and
condition of the individual animal. Practically every
western station has carefully experimented, following
the directions of men who have been free from loss, yet
it has cost each station valuable animals.

Horse stock of all ages find alfalfa pasturage con-
ducive to growth, fattening, and their general health.
If the foliage is short and scant, horses are severe on the
fields used in winter because they are able to crop
close, and not infrequently paw loose dirt away from
the plants, biting off the crowns a fourth or even half
inch below the surface of the ground. It is easy to under-
stand the loss of the bud or growing point may be
detrimental to the growth and usefulness of the plants.

no THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

causing many to die, resulting in bare spots later to be
overgrown by noxious weeds and grasses. After the
damage is done there remains no remedy but to plow up
the field and reseed, or to disk thoroughly and then reseed
the bare spots. If the field has not deteriorated too much,
the latter is much to be preferred. By diligence and
careful treatment, or prompt action closely following any
encroachments upon the life of the plants, the quality and
yield may be maintained and the profits relatively
enhanced. Alfalfa has wonderful recuperative powers,
but continuous nipping of the crowns will do most
serious harm and eventually decrease the yield not a little.

EXPERIENCES WITH CATTLE

One man reports turning eighty steers into one alfalfa
field where there was running water, and a second herd
into another field without running water, but water ran
through a wild grass meadow adjoining, into which this
herd was driven every afternoon and turned back into
the alfalfa the next morning. The first herd suffered no
loss, while five valuable animals died in the second field
on the second day, before they could be removed. When
all were put into the first field there was no more bloat.
Another reported turning cows into a small field where
there was a trough full of water all the time. Here, as
in the case of the steers, a full feed was given before the
cows were turned on the alfalfa. Before noon one cow
had to be relieved by a trocar, and another by being driven
rapidly about the field. The wherefores of such occur-
rences present a problem yet to be solved. Certainly there
is more danger in pasturing cows and sheep on alfalfa

PASTURING AND SOILING III

than most people care to risk. Aside from the financial
loss, there is, also, the humane side of the question.

A very fair statement, representative of those made by
parties who pasture cattle on alfalfa without losses from
bloat, is the following, given to the author by Mr. S. C.
Hanna, an extensive and reputable breeder of Short-
horns, in Elk county, (southern) Kansas, who says:

^'I have been pasturing alfalfa successfully without
bloating my cattle for a number of years ; in fact, I have
never lost an animal from alfalfa bloat. As I am raising
high priced, pure bred Shorthorns and graze them on
my meadows more or less at all times of year, I always
sow a good mixture of English blue-grass (Festuca
elatior) and orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata) with it,
making alfalfa the base and principal seeding. I am very
partial to orchard grass in this mixture because it makes
considerable hay, and springs up so quickly after each
mowing. In this section orchard grass is a stayer, and
will hold its own against all comers.

*'I alw^ays am cautious when we first turn the cattle on
alfalfa, seeing to it that they have a good fill on some-
thing else beforehand, and hold them at first on some
part of the field where the mixed grasses are the thickest,
so they can graze there first. In twenty minutes they will
be safe to go where they wish, and may be allowed to
run at will thereafter. I find, however, that on the clear
alfalfa meadows there is almost no danger from bloat
after the plants have begun to bloom. I usually have
some hay stacked in the pastures, that the cattle may run
to. I have, however, pastured alfalfa in all stages where
there would be perhaps twenty acres of alfalfa in one

112 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

place, and some prairie grass and also tame grasses in
the same enclosure, and had no bloat. This has been,
too, sometimes in May and June, when showers were
frequent and the alfalfa most succulent. It would seem
that the cattle will take care of themselves if they have a
good chance. I usually superintend these changes per-
sonally, and see that all conditions are right.

"I find we get almost as much hay from the mixed
fields as from the exclusively alfalfa meadows, and the
fall aftermath is much better. The theory that alfalfa
will not flourish with the other grasses is wrong. My
favorite meadows contain a mixture of this kind, includ-
ing some red clover, and I have cut four good crops of
hay from them this season, after pasturing moderately
from March 1 5 to May i . I always get the stock horses
and mules on pasture by March 15, and the cattle about
April I, and move them to wild grass prairie pasture
about May i, except a few that we will keep on the
meadows all season. These we change from one field to
another when the alfalfa becomes tall enough to be
trampled down or dar^aged.

'Tf my object was only to raise hay for market, I would
sow the alfalfa alone and keep the stock off altogether,
but for my purpose I prefer a mixture. By doing my way
I never miss a good stand, and the mixture keeps down
the foxtail and crab grass. I have been sowing this mix-
ture for about fifteen years, and have over 300 acres."

Mr. J. R Stodder of Cowley county, Kansas, a promi-
nent breeder of pure bred cattle, makes this statement to
the author, which is simply further testimony that a mix-

PASTURING AND SOILING II3

ture of other grasses with alfalfa intended for grazing
greatly diminishes, if it does not entirely eliminate, the
risk and dangers of bloat :

**I have several fields of mixed grasses. These contain
enough alfalfa so that we cut them for hay at regular
times, and the proportion of grasses and alfalfa is largely
in favor of the latter. In such fields as these I pasture
cattle at will, and have never seen any evidence of bloat
therefrom. But my experience with the straight alfalfa
fields leads me to be very cautious. I find that I can pas-
ture them at times without danger, and at other times a
large proportion of the cattle will bloat. It is possible that
I have made the statement that I never lost cattle by pas-
turing alfalfa, which is true, because we have always
been lucky enough to discover the ailing animals in time
to give them relief."

Mr. F. S. Kirk of Oklahoma, mentioned in Chapter
III, pastures his cattle on alfalfa in fall and spring,
but does not give them access to his meadows in the
morning until the dew has dried ofif, and for only twenty
or thirty minutes the first day or two ; then for an hour
or two for a few days, and after that they are left in the
pastures until sundown.

GENERALLY DANGEROUS TO SHEEP

Experiments with sheep seem to be even more disas-
trous than with cattle. In an investigation conducted by
the Colorado station, losses were reported by nearly every
man who had pastured sheep on alfalfa. Some lost but
one or two, while others lost forty or fifty. A few re-
ported that each spring they lost a few sheep the first

114 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

day they were on the pasture, and then no more, and
that the losses of old sheep were of less importance than
the growth of the lambs, these being seldom affected by
bloat. Most, however, advised that the old should not be
turned on alfalfa under any circumstances, but that
lambs, if well fed in the morning, let on the alfalfa after
the dew was off and then kept there night and day
would do well, and the loss be smaller than that in a nor-
mal season from other causes. J. E. Wing states that his
loss from pasturing lambs on alfalfa in Ohio is less than
it formerly was from one or two parasitic diseases that
never trouble alfalfa-pastured lambs. He gives his lambs
a full feed in the morning, turns them on the alfalfa field
about ten o'clock, and leaves them there continuously
until September. He begins the pasturing just before
the seasons first growth of the alfalfa blooms.

While by no means without risk, pasturing sheep on
alfalfa is not always necessarily fatal and the following,
related in the Breeder's Gazette by Mr. C. H. Williams
of Powell county, Montana, is interesting:

''We have been pasturing sheep in large numbers on
alfalfa for the past eight years. We have lost from bloat
as many as 26 in one day from a flock of 1600, but we
seldom lose one now. We find they are much more apt to
bloat on windy days; more especially if the wind blows
from the south and is soft and balmy. This may seem
strange, but we believe it a fact. We have in our employ
a shepherd who has during the greater part of his life
herded sheep on alfalfa in the vicinity of Pau and
d'Oloron, France. The day we lost 26 ewes from bloat
this man was several miles from the home ranch. When

PASTURING AND SOILING II 5

Visited by the camptender he remarked : 'This will be a
bad day for the old ewes on the alfalfa.' Why so?
'Because the wind is soft and warm,' said he. That
afternoon we found 26 dead.

"Our French shepherd has a simple and never failing
remedy for bloat from alfalfa or clover. It is simply a
half-pint of sweet milk administered to the animal when
found bloated. I saved a fine ram lamb the other day. He
was fearfully bloated, unable to walk and scarcely able to
breathe. I found an old can in the road, hastened to the
pasture, milked a half pint of milk from a cow, set the
lamb on his rump and poured the milk down his throat.
In a half hour he was all right and following the flock.
Milk from a ewe will answer just as well. We have
adopted the following rules : Never allow the sheep to
go on alfalfa pasture when very hungry; if possible get a
little dry feed in their stomachs in the morning before
going to the alfalfa; watch them closely on windy days,
and have the herders carry a bottle of sweet milk."

A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION

The most of the losses reported were of animals which
had been taken off the pasture at night and turned back
the second morning when hungry and eager to graze.
Yet there are reports of severe losses the first day, even
after a full feed. Possibly it will be found that the ani-
mals that suffer from bloat are not in good physical con-
dition, and are more nervous and greedy in their habit of
eating than those not affected. It may be that an intelli-
gent sorting of the animals to be turned on the pasture

Il6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

might save loss. It is also quite generally believed that
alfalfa growing on uplands is less liable to cause bloat
than that raised on bottom lands.

RULES FOR PASTURING

The most generally approved rules in regard to pas-
turing are :

At the beginning of the pasturing season give animals
a heavy feeding in the morning before turning upon the
alfalfa.

Have water in the pasture all the time.

Keep the animals in the pasture night and day, after
they have become accustomed to it, until removed per-
manently.

Use upland in preference to bottom fields for pasture.

Watch the stock closely the first few days and remove
permanently animals that show symptoms of bloat.

Sow blue-grass, brome grass, or meadow fescue with
alfalfa in fields intended for permanent pasture.

The following valuable information upon bloat (tym-
panitis) and its treatment was prepared by Nelson S.
Mayo, formerly professor of veterinary science at the
Kansas agricultural college :

"Bloating, in all cases, is accumulation of gas in the
stomach or intestines, or both, but more particularly in
the paunch (rumen). This gas is produced by a fermen-
tation, similar to that observed when cider is 'working'
and the gas escapes in bubbles. There is usually a small
quantity of gas given off from the food during normal,
healthy digestion, but so small that it causes no trouble,
and passes off readily through the intestines, though

PASTURING AND SOILING II7

sometimes from the stomach, up the esophagus, and out
of the nose or mouth — 'belched up,' as it is commonly
expressed. These gases which cause an animal to bloat
are generated in considerable quantities if a large amount
of juicy, green food is eaten. Alfalfa, clover and frozen
roots are very liable to produce bloating.

''It is well known that only part of the animals in a
herd pasturing upon clover or alfalfa bloat; so the blame
cannot be laid entirely upon the food, but is probably the
result of a slight derangement of the digestive organs,
not ordinarily noticed, but easily aggravated by certain
foods which ferment easily. Animals that are ailing are
very liable to bloat when turned on alfalfa pastures.
Alfalfa and clover are much more liable to produce bloat-
ing if wet with rain or dew, and especially hoar frost,
and animals are more apt to bloat if turned into the pas-
tures when very hungry, as they gorge themselves, and
the food is not properly masticated. Hence, cattle should
not be allowed to go hungry to the pastures.

"It is generally believed by those who have had con-
siderable experience in pasturing clover or alfalfa, that
cattle and sheep are less liable to bloat if they have free
access to dry food, such as hay or straw. Common bloat-
ing, or hoove, occurs in animals having a compound
stomach and that chew the cud — ruminants, as they are
called. Of our common domestic animals, cattle and
sheep belong to this order.

"One of the first symptoms noticed is that the animal
stops feeding, and remains lagging behind or stands by
itself. Rumination, or chewing of the cud, is suspended ;
the animal appears dull and listless, the back slightly

Il8 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

arched; the whole abdomen or belly is distended with a
prominent swelling on the left side just forward of the
point of the hip. If the swelling is tapped lightly with
the fingers there is a hollow, drum-like sound ; hence the
technical name, tympanitis.

"The rumen being distended with gas not only makes
the animal appear much fuller than usual, but it presses
forward on the diaphragm, or ^midriff,' and this presses
against the lungs, and interferes seriously with the ani-
mal's breathing. The breath is short and rapid. The
animal often grunts, or moans, with each breath. The
animal's nose protrudes, and there is a driveling of saliva
from the mouth. Sometimes there are quite severe
colicky pains, shown by the animal's kicking at its belly
and stepping about uneasily. Sometimes, also, the pres-
sure is so great as to cause eversion or bulging out of the
rectum. The symptoms of bloating are so prominent,
especially when the history of the case is taken into
account, as to make this disease very easy to recognize,
even by an ordinary observer.

"When animals die from bloating, death usually takes
place in the following manner: The diaphragm is
pressed against the lungs so hard that the animal cannot
breathe, and it dies of suffocation. Animals usually
remain standing until near the end, when ^hey gradually
lose consciousness, stagger, and fall, and in falling rup-
ture some of the vital organs.

"Treatment must depend somewhat upon the condition
of the animal. If the animal is badly bloated, with la-
bored breathing and staggering gait, energetic meas-
ures must be resorted to at once. The best and most

PASTURING AND SOILING II9

satisfactory treatment for bad cases is tapping. This con-
sists in making a hole through the skin and muscles, over
the prominent swelling on the left side, into the rumen
or 'paunch,' thus allowing the gas to escape at once, re-
lieving the animal.

"The best method of tapping is by means of an instru-
ment called a trocar and cannula. A trocar is a sharp-
pointed instrument, five or six inches long, and about the
size of a lead pencil, with a handle at one end. Over the
point of the trocar slips a tube, called a cannula, not quite
as long as the trocar, with a wide flange around the upper
end of the tube, as shown in the illustration herewith.

TROCAR AND CANNULA

"To use a trocar and cannula, proceed as follows : Tie
the animal so it cannot get away. With a sharp knife,
make a small incision through the skin over the promi-
nent part of the swelling on the left side. This incision

Trocar and Cannula
should be made about naif way between the point of the
hip and the last rib, and should be large enough to admit
the trocar and cannula readily. The incision should be
made quickly; then the animal will not notice it. After
the incision is made the trocar and cannula are pushed
quickly in and directed downward, inward, and forward;
push the trocar in until the flange of the cannula rests
against the skin. Withdraw the trocar and the gas will
rush out; that is, it usually does so; occasionally, how-
ever, the end of the cannula is plugged up with green

120 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

food. This can usually be remedied by pulling out the
cannula part way, or pushing the trocar in again and
withdrawing it. If this doesn't work, tap the stomach
again in another place, using the same hole through the
skin. The escape of gas is usually accompanied by a
small quantity of green food.

"If a trocar and cannula are not available in an urgent
case, a knife can be used very successfully — a good-sized
pocket knife blade, pushed quickly through the skin and
muscles, in the same manner as described for the trocar
and cannula. Care must be taken that the sharp edge of
the blade is not turned towards the animal's tail, as it
sometimes jumps forward, and a much larger hole is cut
than was originally intended.

"A careful and observing stockman of Colorado, who
has had a large experience with alfalfa bloating, informs
me that he prefers a moderately small, sharp butcher
knife to either a trocar and cannula or a pocket knife. It
gives relief quicker and with no bad effects. Sometimes,
if the opening through the skin is small, made by a small
knife, a quill or small tube is fastened in to keep the incis-
ion open, so the gas can escape. It is usually necessary
to keep the incision open for several hours. The only bad
result of tapping is that occasionally green food gets
outside of the rumen into the abdominal cavity in suffi-
cient quantities to cause inflammation and death; but if
the operation is intelligently performed, these bad results
?,re extremely rare — probably not more than one case in
TOO. If the weather is warm, care should be taken that
flies do not bother the wound in the skin.

PASTURING AND SOILING 121

"If the case is not severe enough to warrant tapping,
the following remedies will be found useful : A gag
made by winding a good-sized rope back of the horns and
through the mouth, or a bit, made of a piece of wood the
size of a fork handle, can be tied in the animal's mouth.
The bit should be smooth, to prevent injuring the mouth.
Then a small handful of salt should be thrown well back
on the roots of the tongue. This causes the animal to
work its tongue, increases the flow of saliva, and thus
favors the regurgitation, or gulping up, of the gas. The
salt and saliva swallowed help to stop fermentation.

*' Blankets wrung out of cold water and wrapped
around the abdomen or belly, or cold water dashed on
with a bucket, often give relief. Turpentine given as a
drench, in milk sufficient that it will not irritate the
animal, is good, two ounces of turpentine for adult cattle
and one-half ounce for sheep being a dose. Hyposul-
phite of soda, dissolved in water and given as a drench,
is good ; one ounce for cattle and two drachms for sheep.
This can be repeated every half hour for two or three
doses. Aqua ammonia, two ounces for cattle and one-
half ounce for sheep, well diluted with water; carbolic
acid, cattle 30 drops, sheep 8 to 10 drops in sufficient
water; common soda, in half-ounce doses for cattle and
one-half drachm for sheep, can be given. In giving medi-
cine as drenches, they should be well diluted with water
or other substances until they will not burn w^hen touched
to the tongue. In giving drenches, be careful and not
choke the animal. If the animal coughs or struggles
violently, stop at once until it recovers somewhat. Give
drenches slowly.

122 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

^'Drenches are mostly administered from along-necked,
thick, glass bottle, or drenching horn. Take hold of the
nose with the left hand, by putting the thumb and finger
in the nostrils, while an assistant takes hold of the horns,
and tips the head back. Standing on the right side of
the animal, with the right hand put the neck of the bottle
in the right corner of the mouth, and pour the medicine
in slowly. After the bloating has been relieved, it is a
g-ood plan to give the animal a purgative — one pound of
Epsom salts, with one-half pound common salt, for
cattle; and for a sheep, six ounces of Epsom salts and
three ounces of common salt, dissolved in plenty of warm
water, and given as a drench. The animals should also
be dieted until their digestive organs regain their normal
condition. By dieting, I do not mean starving, but
plenty of easily digested and nutritious food. An animal
that bloats once is very liable to bloat again. By judi-
cious handling and feeding, by watching animals closely,
and treating them in time, few will be lost by alfalfa
bloating."

ALFALFA AS A SOILING CROP

Alfalfa may be cut for soiling just when it contains
the highest per cent of protein, while if pastured some is
eaten before its best period, the most of it after that
point is reached, and proba1)ly a large portion of the
leaves is lost entirely. Cut for soiling and fed daily,
when wilted, there is less danger from bloat, as in this
way animals will eat stalks as well as leaves ; the entire
product is used and there is no loss from trampling the
fields nor by plants being covered and smothered with
animal droppings.

PASTURING AND SOILING I23

SOME COMPxVRISONS

The Nebraska station reports that in an experiment
there it required .71 of an acre to keep a cow for a given
time by soihng, while by pasturing it required 3.63 acres;
also that the cows kept on pasture during the experiment
actually consumed more grain than those that were soiled.
This report further states that while the pastured cows
gave more milk each day, the cost of production was
greater. By another experiment with cows for a single
year it was indicated (Bui. No. 69) "that about twice
as much feed was secured from the land when the alfalfa
was soiled as when it was pastured. The average daily
production of milk and of butterfat was markedly greater
when the crop was pastured than when soiled. In one
test this amounted to one-third more, but in the other
test the difference was not so great. The profits from
soiling as compared with pasturing will depend largely
on two factors — the price of labor and the value of the
land."

A western Kansas farmer writes that one acre of
alfalfa cut daily for soiling maintained as many cows as
he was able to keep on a five-acre field used as pasture.

The Kansas station reported that in an experiment,
lasting 144 days, the cows on alfalfa pasture returned an
income, less cost of grain fed, of $4.23, while cows soiled
on alfalfa cut and fed green returned an income, less the
grain fed, of $18.08. This station also reported that a
neighboring dairyman maintained ten milch cows for a
whole summer, without any grain, on two acres of al-
falfa, cut and fed to them fresh three times a day.

124 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

A METHOD FOR THE SMALL FARMER

In the Central West where labor is scarce and land
comparatively low in price, farmers are not likely to adopt
the soiling system while such conditions exist; but east
of the Mississippi river, and especially in New York,
Pennsylvania and New England, where land is high and
labor scarce, alfalfa offers great possibilities as a soil-
ing crop. The small farmer who now cannot afford to
raise many pigs, because he does not raise enough corn to
fatten them, will find that by soiling alfalfa he can main-
tain from May to September from five acres as many as
ten cows and fifty pigs; and that these pigs, with some
grain from the first of August, while being fed green
alfalfa, may by the middle of November be made ready
for market. If he has another five acres of alfalfa for hay,
it will yield enough in three cuttings to go far toward
wintering his cows, a team of horses, and his sows. His
ten acres will be growing richer every year, and at the end
of five years be in prime condition to yield him big re-
turns in corn, wheat, or potatoes and other vegetables. Al-
falfa is distinctly a crop adapted to the small farmer,
everywhere; there is, as a rule, little question that this
method of utilizing it brings much greater returns per
acre than if it were used as pasturage or hay.

Green alfalfa when pastured, (barring bloat), or cut
and fed daily is peculiarly valuable for all such young
stock as colts, lambs, calves and pigs. It tends to develop
strength of bone and hastens the growth of muscle.

Alfalfa Field in Central New York

Showing growth August 22, 1907, seven days after third cutting

Fourth Cutting of Alfalfa in Shawnee County, Kansas

Photo taken in September

■M bO

W bo

C o

CHAPTER X.

Alfalfa as a Feed Stuff

AS AX APPETIZER

The feeding value of alfalfa is largely in its chemical
compound known as protein; its extreme digestibility is
another desirable quality to be considered, and not least
is its appetizing character. Not only do all animals like
it, but when given in moderate quantities it seems to
increase the general appetite for more fat-making feeds.
Steers beginning to ''fall off" on a heavy diet of corn will
come to their appetites after being fed only a few pounds
of alfalfa daily, and will eat and assimilate more corn
than before.

Alfalfa alone is not a fat-making feed. Animals fed
upon it grow in weight, but the weight is principally of
bone, blood and muscle. It is without a sufficiency of fat
and carbohydrates, and these should be added in such
foods as corn, corn meal, Kafir corn, or Kafir corn meal ;
or to a limited degree even in corn stover, sorghum or
millet. When alfalfa is fed alone all the protein cannot
be digested, and, therefore, it is always economical to add
some carbonaceous foods, if animals are fattening for
market.

126

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

For several years feeders have been deploring the fact
that fattening mainly with corn was becoming less and
less profitable. When they began to figure the exact
cost of each pound of gain on a steer or hog, they saw
clearly that corn alone made the pound of gain cost too
much ; sometimes as much as it was worth in the market,
leaving neither profit nor interest on the investment.
The problem then became how to produce the pound of
meat more economically.

Such a condition has prompted the state stations to
make tests to determine the feeding value of various
articles, and especially the value oi alfalfa as a balance to
the more carbonaceous foods. The tables here appended
are worth studying :

FOOD VAIjUE of SEVERAL! FODDER CROPS

(From New York experiment station Bui. No. ii8.)

Alfalfa....

Corn, entire plant

Red clover

Oats and peas

Timothy

Rutabagas

Mangels

Sugar beets

Yield per acre
of total crop

Poxtnds

34,100
28,000
18,000
13,000
10,000
31,700
2.5,000
17,800

Dry matter
per acre

Pounds

8,C00
5,800
5,220
3,120
3,500
3.400
3,500
2,500

Total digesti-
ble matter
per acre

Potinds

5,280
3,800
3,200
2,521
2,000
3,000
2,750
1,800

Digestible
protein

Pounds

875
300
491
350
228
279
232
213

ANALYSES OF FEEDSTUFFS

The following table gives the analyses of a number of
feedstuffs, showing the percentage of digestible nutrients
and fertilizing- constituents in each :

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF

127

(From Texas experiment station Bui. No. 66)

HAYS :

Alfalfa

Cow'pea

Oat hay

Fodder corn

Sorghum

Cottonseed hulls
GREEN FEEDS:

Alfalfa

Cowpea

Oat fodder

Com silage

Sorghum

Rape

GRAINS:

Wheat bran

Cottonseed meal

Corn

Cowpea

Cotton seed

91.1

57.8

82.04

88.9

28.2
16.4
37.8
20.9
82.4
14.0

88.1
91.8
89.1
85.2
89.7

Digestible nutrients Fertilizer constituents

in 100 pounds

•S

^.^

f->

u>.

11.0

39.6

10.8

38.6

4.3

46.4

2.5

34.6

2.4

40.6

33.1

3.9

12.7

1.8

8.7

1.0

18.9

11.3

2.4

4.1

1.5

8.1

12.2

39.2

37.2

16.9

7.9

66.7

18.3

54.2

12.5

30.0

in 1000 pounds

12; f=

21.9

19.5

17.6

5.1
5.2

6.9

7.2
2.7
4.9

26.7
67.9
18.2
33.3
31.3

5.4
'2.5"

16.8
14.7

1.3
1.0
1.3
1.1

28.9

28.8

7.0

12.7

8.9
16.2'

5.6
3.1
3.8
3.7

16.1
8.7
4.0

From the above table we find that live tons of alfalfa
hay contains 1,100 pounds of protein, equal to this food
element in

Cotton seed meal 2,956 pounds

Linseed meal 3»754 pounds

Wheat bran 9,016 pounds

Cowpea hay 10,185 pounds

Red clover hay 16,176 pounds

Timothy hay 39.285 pounds

RELATIAT] VALUES OF DIFFERENT CUTTINGS

The most interesting experiments comprehending tests
of the comparative yield, composition and digestibility
of early, medium and late cuttings of alfalfa, of the
first, second and third crops; the relative feeding value

Ii8 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

of the various cuttings, and of the different crops,
have been made at the Utah station, details of which are
recorded in the station's bulletins Nos. 31, 44 and 61.
These tests and investigations extended continuously
through a period of five years, and following are the
more important facts developed and the conclusions that
may be legitimately drawn from them, as summarized
(Bui. No. 61) by Profs. Luther Foster and L. A. Mer-
rill who supervised the work :

1. The largest annual yield of hay per acre is obtained
by the method of early cutting and the lowest by the late,
the average result standing as follows: early cutting,
100; medium, 92; and late, 85.

2. The early cut alfalfa contains the highest per cent
of protein and fat, the most valuable food constituents,
and the lowest per cent of crude fiber, the most indigest-
ible portion. The former decrease constantly while the
latter increases rapidly from early bloom to the full
maturity of the plant.

3. The proportionate amount of leaves to stems is
greater al early bloom that at any subsequent time, and
both leaves and stems contain a greater per cent of pro-
tein and a less per cent of crude fiber at this time than
at any later period in the growth of the plant. The rela-
tive proportion of leaves to stems in the different cuttings
is as toilows : early, 42 to 58; medium, 40 to 60; and
late, 33 to 67.

4. Alfalfa leaves as compared with stems are very
much richer in protein, fat and nitrogen-free extract, and
they contain a much smaller proportion of crude fiber.
The per cent of the protein and fat grows constantly less,

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF 1 29

and that of the crude fiber greater, from the time of early
bloom to maturity. The average composition of all cut-
tings and crops shows the leaves to contain 150 per cent
more protein than the stems, 300 per cent more fat, 35
per cent more nitrogen-free extract, and 256 per cent less
crude fiber.

5. The more important nutrients, protein and fat,
have the highest per cent of digestibility in the early cut-
tings and it grows less and less with the age of the plant.

6. In the feeding tests, the highest gains were made
from the early cuttings and the lowest from the late, the
results standing proportionately as follows : early cutting,
100; medium, 85; and late, 75.

7. The variation in the amount of the different cut-
tings eaten per day was very slight, being the highest for
the early cutting and the lowest for the late, but the quan-
tity of dry matter and also of digestible matter required
for a pound of gain was decidedly lowest for the early
cutting and highest for the late, the relative amounts of
dry matter standing as follows: early cutting, 100;
medium, 131; and late, 166.

8. The annual beef product per acre was largest from
the early cuttings, not only in the general average but in
each separate season's test, and that from the late cuttings
was smallest, the proportional products standing as fol-
lows: early cutting, 100; medium, 79^ ; and late, 69^.

9. Taking all points of comparison into consideration,
both separately and collectively, including everything
that pertains to the largest yield and the highest feeding
value, the tests favor cutting alfalfa for cattle feeding
when the first blooms appear.

130 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

CROP COMPARISONS

10. The first crop gave the largest yield in each of
the five tests and in fourteen out of the fifteen cuttings,
while the third crop gave the lov^est for every test and in
every cutting but one. The average acre yields for the
five years, including all cuttings, stand in the following
relation: first crop, 100; second, 78; and third, 39; for
the early cuttings alone, first crop, 100; second, 83;
and third, 66.

11. In the average composition of all cuttings for
three years, the nutrients of the three crops vary but
little. The second has slightly the highest per cent of
protein and fiber; and the third the most fat and nitro-
gen-free extract.

12. The third crop has the largest proportion of
leaves to stems ; but the per cent of protein in the leaves
is highest in the second crop ; and next highest in the first.
The leaves of the first crop contain the most fat and of
the second, the least.

13. The third crop produced a higher average rate
of gain in the feeding tests than the first or second and
also higher than any of the separate cuttings. The
amount eaten daily was also highest of all, but the dry
matter and digestible matter for a pound of gain were the
lowest. In a pound per pound comparison the gains
stood as follows: first crop, 100; second, 81 ; and third,
126; dry matter for a pound of gain, first crop, 100; sec-
ond, 115; and third, 69.

14. The beef product per acre, taking the average
result of all cuttings for the five years, was very much
the highest for the first crop and decidedly the lowest for

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF

131

the third, standing as follows : first crop, 100; second, 61 ;
and third, 45. But taking the early cuttings alone they
stand, first crop, 100; second, 80; and third, 69.

15. Pound for pound, taken as a whole, the results
show the highest feeding value for the third crop and the
lowest for the second.

16. The average annual beef product from early cut
alfalfa was 705.61 pounds per acre; it required 9575
pounds of timothy to produce an equal weight; 11,967
pounds of red clover, and 10,083 pounds of shredded
corn fodder.

Prof. John A. Widtsoe at the Utah station (Bui. No.
48) made a study of the nutrients of the alfalfa crop, and
some of the facts gathered are given in the following
table :

First Cutting

Condition of growth

Protein

Nitrogen-
free extract

Crude fiber

Ether
extract

Ash

May 4 Height 6 1-2 in . .

Pounds

607
1,247

2,278

2,298
1,776

Pounds

168

618

2,108

2,531
2,544

Pounds

40
103
118

116
94

Pounds

167
369
431

423
311

Junel. HeightUsin

July 7. Full flower

Aug. 10. Flowers fallen,
leaves dry

697
745

644

Aug. 24. Still drier

428

Second Cutting

July 7.
July 20.
Aug. 3.
Aug. 24.

Budding

334
519
551
388

657
1,140
1,529
1,484

357
1,031
1,316
1,329

50
78
81
81

197

Medium bloom. .

Full flower

Leaves dry

314
323
333

Third Cutting

Aug. 17
Aug. 31
Sept. 14

138 317

322 757
298 9^

155
634
818

17
33
43

85
211
214

132

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

COMPARATIVE CHOP AND FEEDING VALUES

The following is another table showing the average yield
of alfalfa as compared with some of the more common
fodder crops and hays, as found in New Jersey station
Bulletin No. 148.

Total Yield

Green Forage

per acre

Alfalfa

Corn (entire plant)

Red clover

Barnyard millet....
Crimson clover.... ••

Cowpeas

Oats and peas

Pounds

36,540
24,000
14,000
16,000
14,000
16,000
14,000

Dry Matter
per acre

Pounds

8,258
5,040
4,088
4,000
2,674
2,624
2,107

t'>n alfalfa hay contams

" red clover hay contains...

" oats and peas contains....

" timothy contains

" wheat bran contains

" wheat middlings contains

" rye bran contains

" oats contains

" rice meal contains

" buckweat bran contains ..

Dry Matter

Pounds

1,809
1,694
1,375
1,736
1,762
1,758
1,768
1,780
1,796
1,790

Total Protein
per acre

Pounds

616
384
434

384

Total Protein

Pounds

265
246
175
118
308
312
294
236
240
248

At the Colorado station (Bui. No. 26) Prof. W. W.
Cooke compared an acre of dent (Golden Beauty) corn,
planted May 16 and harvested September 21, with returns
from an acre of alfalfa on an adjoining plat, three years
seeded. The corn crop was a fair one, and including
ears and stalks weighed 15,500 pounds, containing 35.62
per cent or 5539 pounds of dry matter. The alfalfa
yielded three cuttings of hay weighing respectively 4600,
3350 and 3250 pounds, or 5.6 tons, containing 10,304
pounds of dry matter. But, as Professor Cooke says, this

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF

133

is not quite a fair comparison, for a pound of dry matter
from the corn crop is more digestible and has a higher
feeding value than an equal amount from the alfalfa.
The corn crop contained 3605 pounds of digestible feed-
ing material, while the alfalfa crop contained 561 1
pounds, or a little more than half as much again. The
corn crop per acre in feeding value was equivalent to
three and a half tons of alfalfa hay.

The total digestible nutrients of the two crops are
presented in the following table :

TOTAL

DIGESTIBLE

Com

Alfalfa

Com

Alfalfa

Pounds

5,539

405

3,263

1,472

315

Pounds
10,304
1,602
4,782
2,800
246
829

Pounds

3,605

296

2,186

1,060

Pounds

5,611

1,198

3,114

1,198

101
101

Aluuniinoids

Starfh siipar ptp .

Fiber

Fat (ether extract)

Ash ..

COMPARATIVE VALUES OF ALFALFA HAY AND OTHER
FEEDSTUFFS FOR PROTEIN

Feedstuff

Alfalfa hay (average)

Red clover hay

Orchard-grass hay

Millet hay

Timothy hay

Sorghum hay

Corn-fodder (stover)

Oat straw

Wheat straw

Sugar beets

Mangel-wurzels

Alfalfa hay containing 12.9 per cent

digestible protein

Wheat bran

Value per ton when prairie hay
is worth per ton—

$4.00

$12.11
7.77
5.48
5.14
3.31
2.74
2.28

.91
1.25
1.14

14.73
14.0*

134 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

It is seen that the alfalfa yielded nearly twice as many
pounds of dry matter as the corn, with the digestible
nutrients far in the lead, and the protein of the alfalfa
was three times that of the corn.

THE BAIiANCED RATION

No feeder can learn to use alfalfa, or in fact any for-
age or grain, in the most economical way until he under-
stands somewhat the compounding of a balanced ration.
All foodstuffs for either man or beast are, as already
stated, made up of three classes of substances — namely,
protein or proteids, carbohydrates and fats. The animal's
digestive and assimilative organs are so constructed that
it cannot use these three classes of substances interchange-
ably; in other words, an animal fed wholly upon any one
of these three would be in process of gradual starvation.
Given in the proportions needed to best supply the vital
organs of the body, these substances become the suste-
nance for animal life and growth. The protein builds up
the brain, nerves, muscles and other tissues in which the
life force is active, and without protein there would be
no life.

To balance a ration for domestic animals is to so
adjust the quantity of digestible proteids, fats and carbo-
hydrates it contains that the animal economy may use
each without waste. The balanced ration means an eco-
nomical ration, allowing the digestive organs to work at
their highest efficiency; an unbalanced ration is one in
which one of the three classes of food substances is in
excess, or is deficient. Fed such a ration, the animal
retaliates upon its owner by failure to digest the excess,

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF I35

which is worse than wasted; for the feeding of any class
of substances in excess adds to the labor of the digestive
organs and reduces their efficiency.

>L\KIXG A BALANCED RATIOX

In Press Bulletin No. 12, from the Kansas station, the
following is given to illustrate somewhat how a balanced
ration would differ from others into which consideration
of a proper balance had not entered :

"There are three important groups of substances in
feeds — protein, carbohydrates, and fat. Protein includes
all materials in feeds which contain nitrogen. It enters
into the composition of milk, blood, muscle, hair and the
brain and nerves ; is necessary in the formation of these,
and no other substance can take its place. Protein is
also used in the body in producing heat, energy and fat.
Carbohydrates include the fiber of feeds, the sugars,
starch, and gums, and furnish heat, energy and fat in the
body. Carbohydrates and fat can take each other's
places, one pound of fat being worth 2.2 pounds of carbo-
hydrates for production of Keat in the body.

''Extended investigations have shown that to obtain the
best results, feed should be given which will furnish these
materials in the following proportions :

"Dairy cow — protein, 2^ pounds; carbohydrates, I'zYz
pounds; fat, ^ pound.

"Fattening steer — protein, 2^ to 3 pounds; carbohy-
drates, 15 pounds; fat, ^ to J^ pound.

"Growing cattle — protein, 4 pounds; carbohydrates,
13^ pounds; fat, 2 pounds.

"For a young animal (cattle) gradually decrease the
proportion of protein until at the age of two years the pro-

136

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

portions are similar to those for the fattening steer, but
less in quantity. A pig two to three months old needs feeds
containing seven and one-half pounds of protein to each
thirty pounds of carbohydrates and fat, while a year-old
pig needs seven and one-half pounds of protein to each
forty-eight pounds of carbohydrates and fat. Feeds con-
taining a greater proportion of protein than called for
by these standards can be fed, because protein can take
the place of the other materials. Carbohydrates and fat
cannot take the place of protein, however, and no matter
in how large quantities they may be fed, if protein is
lacking, the growth or gain will be less.

"The weak point in feeding is that the average rations
are greatly deficient in protein, and have too much carbo-
hydrates and fat. Every feeder knows that good pastur-
age produces rapid growth, good gains, and abundant
milk yields. It furnishes nutriment in the proportion of
three pounds of protein, twelve pounds of carbohydrates,
and one-half pound of fat. The proportions in some of
our feeds in pounds per loo pounds of feed, are as
follows :

Com

Kafir-corn

Prairie hay...
Corn fodder..
Sorghum hay

Protein

Carbohy-
drates

7.8

66.7

7.8

57.1

3.5

41.8

2.0

33.2

1 "

40.6

Fat

1.6
2.7
1.4
0.6
1.2

'Tt will be seen that none of these contain a sufficient
proportion of protein to secure best results, and all com-
binations of these feeds will have the same defect.

ALFALFA AS A FEED STUFF

"Some feeds have too great a proportion of protein to
be fed alone, as shown below, the figures indicating
pounds per lOO pounds of feed :

Alfalfa hay

Gluteu-meal

Linseed-oil meal
Cottonseed-meal
Soy-beans

Protein

10.6
31.1

28.8
37.0

Carbohy- |

drates i

43.9
32.8
16.5
22.3

Fat

1.4

4.8

7.1

12.6

14.4

"Making a balanced ration is combining the feeds
deficient in protein with those having an excess of it, to
make a ration which will contain the right proportions
for the animals fed."

VARIATIONS IX ANAIiYSIS

Variations in the foregoing tables would indicate that
the analysis is likely to vary with the product of differ-
ent soils and different cultivations. In spite of variations
it may be readily seen that alfalfa with its high protein
value makes a very effective and economical balance for
corn for heavy feeding. When it is taken into considera-
tion that this forage so rich in protein can be raised at
home, and that its growing is at the same time enriching
the soil, the conclusion is easy that alfalfa hay may profit-
ably constitute a part of all the fattening operations ; it is
also clear that the economical way to market alfalfa is
through the farm's live stock.

CHAPTER XI.

Alfalfa in Beef-Making

The cattle feeder is not much given to sentiment and
cares less for the beauty of the purple flowers of the al-
falfa than he does for the best method of converting
those purple flowers and the accompanying foliage into
marketable beef. An accepted but unwritten rule of corn-
feeding is that looo pounds of grain with ordinary for-
age will produce lOO pounds of gain, under normal con-
ditions.

SOME FEEDING TESTS

The Kansas station in a careful feeding test of 153
days produced 100 pounds of gain with 718 pounds of
grain by using alfalfa hay for roughness. This test also
gave the following table of gain in values, from the use
of different feeds in the same given time :

Corn and alfalfa hay $109.74

Corn and prairie hay 56.96

Corn and sorghum hay 27.09

Corn and oat straw 43-28

Barley and alfalfa hay 57- 16

The Utah station after a feeding test published the
statement that to produce 705.61 pounds of beef it re-
quired :

Of alfalfa hay 7,182 pounds

Of timothy hay 9,575 ''

Of red clover hay 1 1,967 "

Of shredded corn fodder. . 10,08^ "

ffi 1

4) <L)

O '^

bfl "g

.S P

•-I

n
m

rt-

5*
OP

5*.
o'

ALFALFA IN BEEF-MAKING 1 39

At this Station steers made a most rapid gain when fed
upon early cut alfalfa hay, either with or without an
accompanying ration of grain. "By early cut hay was
meant hay cut just before bloom. The gain upon this
early cut alfalfa hay was one-third more than that upon
hay cut when in full bloom or later."

The Utah station also reports a cattle feeding test
(Bui. No. 61) in which lOO pounds of gain from feeding
alfalfa hay cost $3.76; from timothy, $4.71, and from
corn fodder, $6.21.

At the Nebraska station Prof. Howard R. Smith (Buls.
85 and 90) fed 50 yearling and 50 two-year-old grade
steers in lots of ten for six months, each lot of each fifty
having rations different from the others, and the table
herewith shows the average cost per pound of gain made
by each steer of each lot of yearlings :

Lot fed com and prairie hay 8.27 cents

*' " com 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and prairie hay.. .6.82
'• " corn 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and corn stover.. .6.09 "
" " corn 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and sorghum hay.7.00 "
•' " com and alfalfa hay 6.04 "

Below is shown the cost under similar conditions with
the two-year-olds, (the cost of the corn and oil meal fed
them having been slightly greater than that fed the year-
lings) :

Lot fed com and prairie hay 8.23 cents

" " corn 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and prairie hay ....8.27 "
" " corn 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and corn stover ...6.49 "
" " corn 90 per cent, oil meal 10 per cent, and sorghum hay..7.87 "
" " com and alfalfa hay 6.89 '•

Among the deductions from these experiments, Profes-
sor Smith records the following, bearing upon the use of
alfalfa :

140 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

"Alfalfa is much superior to prairie hay when the grain
consists of corn alone. It also proved to be a cheaper
source of protein than oil meal. The returns on the cattle
fed alfalfa hay, were the alfalfa figured at $11.14 P^r
ton, would have been as great as the returns on prairie
hay at $6 per ton, with corn as the grain ration at 39
cents per bushel. In comparison with prairie hay at $6
when oil meal worth $28 per ton was a part of the grain
ration, the alfalfa returned a value of $8.28 per ton.
(In these experiments the cost of all alfalfa hay and all
prairie hay was figured at the one price of $6 per ton. —
Author. )

'^Bright, well-cured corn stover fed with an equal
weight of alfalfa, the grain consisting of corn alone, gave
slightly larger gains tiian corn and alfalfa, and proved
the most economical ration in the experiment. The addi-
tion of corn stover may have improved, to some extent,
the corn and alfalfa ration by furnishing greater variety,
and by its tendency to check scours sometimes caused by
alfalfa. The stover fed with alfalfa returned a value of
$4.57 per ton in comparison with alfalfa at $6 per ton
as the sole roughness.

"By feeding alfalfa hay, which is a protein-rich rough-
ness, extremely palatable and readily masticated, in place
of prairie hay with corn alone, 14 per cent less grain was
required for each pound of gain on two-year-olds and 2.^
per cent less on yearlings.

"Alfalfa hay, fed once per day in connection with corn
and well-cured cornstalks, furnished sufficient protein for
two-year-olds to make the three foods a combination

ALFALFA IN BEEF-MAKING I4I

producing heavy and very economical gains — more eco-
nomical than any other ration in the experiment.

"Alfalfa is pronouncedly superior to prairie hay for
beef production, and the more rapid the extension of the
area of land devoted to the production of alfalfa, sup-
planting the less valuable and lower yielding native hay,
the more rapid will be the production of wealth from our
soil."

One authority who has made a study of such problems
says, ''steers can be fattened on one-third less corn with
alfalfa for roughness than w^ithout."

W. H. Jordan, director of the New York (Geneva)
experiment station says : 'Trobably no species of forage
are known that are more economical sources of high-
class cattle food than alfalfa and corn, and if in the
realms of stock raising corn is king, alfalfa is queen."

FEEDING TOO MUCH AliFAIiFA

Many feeders make the mistake of feeding too much
alfalfa hay to young steers grained heavily on corn.
Careful tests seem to prove that cattle on a heavy feed of
corn, corn meal, Kafir-corn or Kafir-corn meal gain as
much with 15 or 20 pounds of alfalfa hay per day as by
having 35 pounds, the very common quantity in feeding.
It is also reported by experienced feeders that steers over
three years old may be fattened on alfalfa with a mod-
erate feed of corn, while for younger steers the heavy
feed should be corn with 15 to 25 pounds of alfalfa hay
per day.

A Colorado feeder put a lot of steers nearly four years
old on a daily ration of ten pounds of corn chop and

142 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

fifteen pounds of alfalfa hay for lOO days. The gain
was surprising and the steers weighed on the Denver
market about 1430 pounds per head.

A feeder in Osborne county, Kansas, reported to the
author the following: ^'Began feeding 22 two-year-old
steers on February 3rd, averaging 941 pounds in weight.
Gave them no feed but alfalfa hay until March 4th. From
March 4th until May ist fed all the alfalfa they wanted
and 243 bushels of corn chop, when they weighed out
at an average gain of 259 pounds each in 86 days, or
three pounds per day on a feed of 11 bushels of corn
chop and plenty of alfalfa hay per steer.''

Western feeders generally claim to be able to put fat
cattle on the market from 20 to 30 per cent cheaper with
alfalfa as the balance than on corn alone, or with corn
and bran or any purchased protein foods. The cheapest
beef-making in the West is the raising of calves on
alfalfa, and at 20 to 24 months fattening them by a heavy
feeding of corn and alfalfa hay for 100 days. Cattle car-
ried to 1000 to 1200 pounds on alfalfa, and then finished
by strong feeding on corn with alfalfa hay for fifty to
sixty days, make beef of a choice quality at a low cost.

CHAPTER XIL

Alfalfa and the Dairy

MAKING A MARGIN

The most enthusiastic advocates of alfalfa are dairy-
men. The market price of milk is quite well fixed and
the price of butter fat at the creameries remains, in the
different seasons, pretty much the same year by year.
Hence, the problem of increasing his financial returns
must depend upon the dairyman's being able to increase
the volume of his product or to decrease the cost, or both.
If he is selling butter fat at a profit of five cents and he
cannot force the price any higher, it is the sensible thing
to decrease the cost per pound and thereby enlarge his
profit.

The dairyman who buys all his feed has but little mar-
gin. To raise enough clover calls for considerable land.
Alfalfa will yield a large bulk of excellent feed from a
few acres of well treated land. For profit he must raise
more feedstuff and buy less. The Kansas station reported
that with common scrub cows fed on alfalfa hay and
Kafir corn meal it was possible to produce butterfat at a
cost of seven cents a pound.

SOME MHiKING TEST VALUATIONS

The New Jersey station as a result of a very pains-
taking milking test reported: (i) In a ration where

144 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

alfalfa hay was tested against wheat bran and dried
brewers' grain the saving in the cost of milk was 12.7
cents per hundred, and 2.3 cents per pound of butter when
alfalfa hay was used. This saving means a great deal
when it is considered that the alfalfa is raised and not
purchased. (2) That the milk value of one acre of
alfalfa was $74.

A Kansas dairyman is reported to have kept ten cows
through one summer on the alfalfa cut daily from a patch
containing four square rods less than two acres.

Some dairymen believe that there is a great saving in
the alfalfa hay by cutting it into two-inch lengths, and
feeding it dry. It is also believed that it will always be
a matter of economy to feed with the alfalfa, green or as
hay, a small ration of carbonaceous food, even corn-
stover serving such a purpose.

Former Governor Hoard, editor of Hoard's Dairyman,
says that with alfalfa hay at $10 and bran at $20 per ton
there is a saving, by using alfalfa, of $2.80 for every 100
pounds of butter made, and a saving of 19.8 cents for
every 100 pounds of milk.

In a section of New York where alfalfa has been quite
generally introduced, dairymen claim an increase in their
profits of 15 to 30 per cent by its use, besides the enrich-
ment of their farms for other crops.

Prof. D. H. Otis, telling of experiments with the dairy
herd at the Kansas agricultural college, states that, "it is
usually recommended to feed a cow all the rough feed
she will eat, and then balance up the ration with grain.
The experience at the college indicates that much rough
feed is wasted in careless feeding. The cow will eat the

ALFALFA AND THE DAIRY

145

best first, and, if given too much, will pick the most
desirable morsels, leaving what might be called passably
good, which too frequently is treated as waste and
thrown under foot. No more hay should be given an
animal than it will eat up clean. This refers to first-class
quality, however, as a cow could not be expected to eat
poor hay clean.

"In feeding the rough feeds, the following table has
been used by the college as a guide :

KouGHNESs.— Value per ton when alfalfa is worth $1-00 per ton

Fekd

Total
nutrients

Protein
nutrients

Feed

Total
nutrients

Protein
nutrient

Dky Roughness
Alfalfa

$1.00
.32
.97
.40
.&4
.59
S.3

$1.00
.19
1.02
.24
.42
.41
1:^

Green Roughness
Alfalfa

$0.34
.13
.14
.23
.12
.28

.10
.14
.11

$0.37

Corn-fodder

Corn silage . . .

Fodder corn

Pasture grasses...
Sorghum fodder. . .
Soy-beans

.12
.09
.24
.06
.30

Fodder Corn

Millet

Oat hav

Oat straAV

Roots and Tubers

Orchard-gi-ass

Prairie hay

.60 1 .45
.51 1 .33
.70 ! .64
.43 i .23

.98 1 1.02
.67 ! M
47 •>"

Sugar-beets

Turnips

Sorghum

.08

Soy-beans

Timothy

Wheat straw

.25

.08

''Students working with the dairy herd were anxious
to have the cows make the best possible yields, and were
tempted to give all the good alfalfa hay the cows would
eat. When we discovered the alfalfa hay going too rap-
idly we looked for the cause and found that the dairy
cows had consumed an average of forty-three pounds per
head daily, besides fifteen pounds of Kafir corn fodder.
The quantity of alfalfa was reduced to thirty-three pounds

146 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

and the Kafir-corn fodder to three and one-half pounds
daily per cow, and we found that the daily yield of milk
was slightly increased. The quality of the hay was the
same in both instances. In the latter case it was eaten up
clean, while in the former considerable was hauled away
and fed to dry cows. Later records show a still greater
reduction in the allowance of alfalfa without decreasing
the flow of milk. This experience shows some of the
leaks that may take place in feeding roughness, especially
when those feeds are appetizing, like alfalfa and red
clover.

'Tor ease of calculation the roughness is figured on
the basis of alfalfa hay selling for one dollar per ton.
When alfalfa is worth six dollars per ton the other rough
feeds are worth six times the amount indicated in the
table; when alfalfa is worth eight dollars per ton the
other feeds are worth eight times as much, and so on.
Usually we find that we can give practically all the rough
feed that the cows can eat, although, as indicated above,
with a good quality of alfalfa or clover hay more may be
eaten than will be consumed at a profit. At this writing
alfalfa hay is selling in Manhattan at seven dollars per
ton. This would make the feeding values of the other
rough feeds worth seven times the amount indicated in
the table. Red clover, for instance, would be worth seven
times seventy cents or $4.90 per ton ; prairie hay would be
worth $3.57 per ton; and millet hay would be worth
$4.48 per ton. If the problem was to select the most eco-
nomical roughness, we would select alfalfa at seven dol-
lars per ton, in preference to red clover at six dollars
per ton, or prairie hay at four dollars per ton, or millet

ALFALFA AND THE DAIRY 147

at five dollars per ton. Knowing the cost of these differ-
ent rough feeds and having this table before him, a feeder
can tell which is the most economical feed to use. It will
be noticed that the table is divided into two parts, the
first part giving the value of the total nutrients, and the
second one the value of the protein nutrients. It fre-
quently happens that we have plenty of carbohydrates
and fat, but that we are lacking in protein. In this case
we would consult the 'protein nutrients' column in order
to determine what feed to buy in order to furnish the
protein most economically. If it be carbohydrates and
fat as well as protein that is required, as was the condi-
tion in the dry year of 1901, then we should take the
total nutrients' column. When it is possible to get a
rough feed containing a large amount of protein, we find
that in feeding a liberal allowance of roughness the grain
can be reduced. Hence, the importance of providing
roughness rich in protein, like alfalfa."

SELLING FARM PRODUCTS THROUGH THE COW

No other branch of agriculture presents more advan-
tages than dairying — disposing of the products of the
farm as milk and butterfat. When the latter may be sold
to creamery stations and the skim milk fed to calves and
pigs along with alfalfa the profits are greater than from
almost any other form of agriculture. No other business
tends so rapidly to build up the fertility of the farm, and,
when judiciously conducted, no other branch of farming
yields more satisfactory financial returns. Raising and
feeding alfalfa will add from 15 to 30 per cent to the
profits of dairying over the use of any other feedstuff

148 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

that may be raised or bought. The profit problem for
the dairyman is constantly to find the feed that will
decrease the cost of his production.

The diagram below, prepared by the editor of the
Nebraska Farmer^ is to ''represent the digestible protein
or milk property contained in different kinds of rough-
ness. Points represent the decimals of a pound, and the
bars are an exact representation of the superiority of one
kind of food over another for the production of milk.
Each bar represents 10 pounds of roughness. The ap-
proximate yield is also given per acre :"

Com Stover

Approximate Yield Per Acre.

6 to 8 Tons

10 to 14 Tons

2 Tons

17 Point?

Drilled Corn Fodder

25 Points

Timothy Hay-

28 Points

Prairie Hay

2 Tons

30 Points

Millet Hay

3 Tons

32 Points

Oat Hay

3 to 4 Tons

43 Points

Red Top

2 Tons

48 Points

Red Clover

2 Tons

68 Points

Alsike

3 Tons

84 Points

Alfalfa

G to 8 Tons

110 Points

A. S. Hitchcock cites as an illustration of feeding alfal-
fa alone, the case of the dairy farms in the vicinity of
Moneta, CaL, where the stock are ordinarily fed no other
ration than alfalfa. As alfalfa is not a balanced ration, a
number of local dairymen tried to replace a part of the
alfalfa by sorghum, thus giving a more nearly balanced
ration. The cows, however, did not give as much milk
upon this combination as upon pure alfalfa. ''This result

ALFALFA AXD THE DAIRY 1 49

may be assigned to the fact that the cattle were unable to
consume a sufficient quantity of the mixture to produce
the same results as the alfalfa alone. These dairymen
find they can secure a larger yield by feeding a little
grain ; but the increased yield does not pay for the grain,
which is high priced in this locality."

AN ESSEXTIAIi IN 3irLK PRODUCTION

Oscar Erf, professor of dairying at the Kansas experi-
ment station, writing for this volume, says : "Alfalfa is
quite indispensable in successful dairy operations, being
one of the cheapest sources of protein, that most essential
compound in feeds for milk production. The Kansas sta-
tion found that for milk Ij4 pounds of well-leaved al-
falfa hay, containing a high per cent of protein, is equal in
feeding value to a pound of bran. In case the alfalfa is
of a stemmy nature it requires i^ pounds to equal the
feeding value of a pound of bran. Alfalfa hay is worth
from $4 to $7 per ton on the farm, while bran costs from
$14 to $20 per ton, hence it is far more economical to
feed the alfalfa hay.

"Like other hays alfalfa varies in composition accord-
ing to the time of cutting, the soil on which it grows, and
its per cent of leaves. It has been found that three-fourths
of a pound of alfalfa hay is equal in feeding value to a
pound of clover hay of equal brightness and quality. A
good stand of clover yields about 2J/2 tons per acre per
year, while a good stand of alfalfa yields about 5 tons
per acre per year. Hence, on an acre of land, 1 100 pounds
of protein can be produced by raising alfalfa while only
340 pounds can be produced by growing clover, the pro-

150 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

tein in the alfalfa and that in the clover being equally
digestible. This comparison is chosen from the fact that
clover is the next cheaper source of protein found on the
farm.

**At the Kansas station the following experiment was
conducted, and illustrates the low cost of a ration includ-
ing alfalfa hay for roughness as compared with a ration
in which prairie hay was used. The experiment was with
ten cows. The first ration consisted of 21 pounds of
alfalfa hay and 9 pounds of corn. While the cows were
on this ration each produced an average 26 pounds of
milk per day, the milk containing 3.9 per cent of butter fat.
To formulate a ration from prairie hay and bran which
had the same amount of nutrients, we were obliged
to feed 19 pounds of bran and 15 of hay. Fed on this
each cow produced only 24 pounds of milk per day, con-
taining 4 per cent of butterfat. The 21 pounds of alfalfa
hay at $7 per ton, which is rather a high estimate, and 9
pounds of corn at 70 cents per hundred weight cost 13.6
cents per day. At this rate it cost 31-3 cents to produce
a gallon of milk, or approximately 13.5 cents for a pound
of butterfat. Estimating bran at $16 per ton and prairie
hay at $5 per ton, the cost of the second ration was 18.95
cents per day, and milk approximately 7 cents per gallon,
making the butterfat worth 19.7 cents per pound.

"The following two tables show the difference in cost
between a ration in which alfalfa is used for part of the
roughness and one which contains no alfalfa but has the
same amount of digestible nutrients :

ALFALFA AND THE DAIRY 15'

Alfalfa hay . . 19 lbs at $ 7-00 per ton. . .$.066

Corn
Bran

7 lbs at .70 percwt... .049
2>4 lbs at 18.00 per ton. . . .0225

$.1375

Sorghum hay. .10 lbs at $ 3-50 per ton. $.0175
Prairie hay. ... 12 lbs at 6.00 per ton. .036
Ground wheat.. 8 lbs at .80 per bu.. .1066
Cottonseed meal. 3 lbs at 24.00 per ton. .036

$.1961

"As shown by the table a gain of 5.86 cents is made by
feeding the alfalfa. Being a proteinaceous feed it can to
a great extent be substituted for cottonseed meal, hnseed
meal or gluten meal, and will entirely substitute other
leguminous hays and forages, such as soy bean hay, cow-
pea hay. clover hay and vetch hay any one « -hich ,s
more expensive, for nutrients contamed. than alfalfa hay.
"The Kansas station has found it practicable, from
results obtained in the past three years, to ensile green
alfalfa for dairy cows. This is superior to dry alfalfa
owing to its succulent nature. In the eastern part of the
United States ensiling alfalfa has another advantage m
that all cuttings can be harvested in perfect condition. As
a rule the first cutting throughout this whole territory is
liable to be damaged more or less by rains. By putting
the green alfalfa into a well constructed silo this loss can
be obviated and the full value retained. For example: a
man has 40 acres of alfalfa, from which he harvests for
the first crop i V. tons per acre. Estimating the price of

152 THE BOOK ALFALFA

good, clean alfalfa hay at $7 a ton, this would be worth
$420. Should the hay be damaged by rain its value would
be greatly reduced and, as has been the case for many
years, such damaged hay could be purchased for $2 or
less per ton. Accordingly this damaged hay would be
worth $120. The loss caused by rain would therefore be
$300. Put into the silo this first cutting would be equal
in value to the best bright hay.

''The cost of a 100-ton silo is $250, hence the owner
could not only save the first cutting, but money besides.
Furthermore, it is not infrequently the case that alfalfa
of the first cutting is of a stemmy nature, and it has been
estimated that fully 28 per cent of such hay is wasted
when fed to cows, as they do not eat the coarse stems.
This loss can be entirely eliminated by the siloing, for
cows will readily eat the stems as silage.

"The value of alfalfa silage in influencing the milk flow
was indicated when a ration was fed to sixteen cows, in
•which 12 pounds of alfalfa hay, 20 pounds of corn silage,
5 pounds of bran and 4 pounds of corn meal were used ;
this ration was afterward changed by substituting alfalfa
silage for the corn silage, and at the same time the bran
was reduced to i pound, and the corn increased i pound.
By these changes the milk was increased 10 per cent.

"With butterfat worth 23 cents a pound the value of a
ton of alfalfa silage has been estimated at approximately
$8. This silage solves the problem of feeding cows eco-
nomically in summer, as well as in winter, under a system
of intensive farming."

W. J. Fraser, chief in dairy husbandry at the Univer-
sity of Illinois, says: "Corn silage and alfalfa, two of

ALFALFA AND THE DAIRY 1 53

the best feeds for dairy cows, make practically a complete
or balanced ration in themselves. Several years' experi-
ence in supplying- the university dairy herd with various
kinds of soiling crops in midsummer has led to this high
recommendation of corn silage and alfalfa.

Alfalfa hay has much the same laxative effect as June
pasture. An Elgin, III, dairyman, with fifty cows, says:
"Every month I feed alfalfa in winter gives me a month
In which I have practically pasture conditions. The cows
show the pasture-effect in the glossy condition of their
hair and in the yield of milk, and have never before
looked quite so well.

CHAPTER XIIL

Alfalfa for Swine

HOGS WILLI EAT HAY

In the preceding chapter it was stated that alfalfa is a
valuable pasture or soiling crop for pigs. It is equally
true that they will actually eat alfalfa hay. A hog is not
usually ranked as a hay-eating animal but an exception
must be made as to his eating alfalfa hay. As a pasture
or soiling crop for sows and young pigs, alfalfa proves a
wonderfully helpful ration for milk-making in the sow
and for growth in the pigs. Experiments have shown
that pigs make better growth when the dam is fed consid-
erable alfalfa than those from sows fed the best of com-
mercial rations, but with no alfalfa. Given two sets of
pigs, one fed clover, rape and soaked corn and the other
fed only alfalfa forage, the latter seemed to grow the
more rapidly. For brood sows it is a most valuable food,
either as hay, a soiling crop, or as pasture. The litters of
such sows are generally large and vigorous and the dams
have a strong flow of nutritious milk. Alfalfa meal in
slop may be used with profit where the hay is not to be
obtained. It is also claimed that sows fed on alfalfa dur-
ing pregnancy will not devour their young, its mineral
elements seeming to satisfy the appetite of the sow, while
contributing to the fetal development of the pigs.

<^ iw-

Five-year-old Alfalfa

at the time of its third cutting. September 8. and its root development Grown
at Manhattan, Kansas, on upland prairie having a heavy clay subsoil

ALFALFA FOR SWINE 1 55

On a farm of Governor Hoard, in Wisconsin, all the
brood sows have for several years been wintered on alfalfa
hay of the third cutting, and their drink, without any
grain until the last two weeks of gestation. Mr. Hoard
says the object was to give the sows a food that should
keep them in a non-feverish state and furnish protein
sufficient to build the bodies of the forthcoming pigs.
(Their "drink" was the skim milk from the dairy.)

"It was a matter of experiment at first, our only guide
being what knowledge and reason we could exerc;ise from
what we knew, or thought we knew, of the philosophy of
gestation. The experiment proved to be a success from
the first. The sows went through their work in fine con-
dition, giving milk abundantly. The pigs came with splen-
did vitality, thus reducing our losses from early death
fully 30 per cent over what they had previousl}^ been.
The hay is fed dry and is thrown into the pen on the feed-
ing floor without any cutting or chaffing whatever. We
have sometimes thought we would try the experiment of
cutting it into half-inch lengths and moistening it. Pos-
sibly it would take less hay in this way. The sows keep
in good flesh, fully as much so as we like."

A Finney county, Kansas, farmer reports having pas-
tured 30 pigs on one acre of alfalfa from May ist to
September ist, when they weighed 100 pounds each and
were in fine condition for fattening. Another Kansas
farmer reports keeping 100 pigs from about the middle
of April to September on five acres of alfalfa pasture. A
little grain during the last two months would have gained
him many pounds of pork. Many alfalfa raising pig-

156 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

growers insist that their pigs can be maintained from
May to October on alfalfa for one-half what it would
cost for almost any other feed.

The Utah station found that young shoats gained one-
third of a pound a day on alfalfa pasture without grain.
But the station found also that the gain was not so great
in older hogs. A Wisconsin dairyman reported that he
kept nine sows all winter and spring on alfalfa hay and
skim milk, without any grain, and raised from them 75
pigs, all healthy and vigorous.

The Colorado station considers that a ration of three-
fourths corn and one- fourth alfalfa hay is the best for
fattening hogs for market, but for young hogs not ready
for fattening the proportions should be reversed. The
station does not recommend grinding alfalfa hay for
hogs, probably on the theory that the hog's time is not
worth much at best.

A VAL.UABLE FEEDING TEST

The Kansas station in the fall of 1898 made a series of
experiments of interest to feeders everywhere. The test
was to determine the value of alfalfa hay fed to fattening
hogs that were receiving all the grain they would eat.
The results are related here in the language of the
bulletin :

"The hogs fed in this experiment were bought of farm-
ers, and averaged in weight 125 pounds each. They were
placed in lots of ten each, in large pens, having for shelter
some sheds open to the south. The alfalfa hay used was
of the best quality, carefully cured. Blackhulled White
Kafir-corn was the grain used, the hogs being fed all they

ALFALFA FOR SWINE 157

would eat without waste. The hay was fed dry in fork-
fuls in a large flat trough. The pigs were given more
than they could eat, and they picked out the leaves and
finer stems, rejecting the coarser stems. One lot of hogs
was fed Kafir-corn meal dry and alfalfa hay; one lot
whole Kafir-corn dry; one lot Kafir-corn meal dry, and
one lot Kafir-corn meal wet.

"The experiment began on November 24 and lasted
nine weeks. By that time the alfalfa-fed hogs became
well fattened^ and were marketed. We estimated that it
would require four to five weeks additional feeding, with
ordinary weather, to get the hogs that were fed grain
alone into good marketable condition.

"The grain in nine weeks from the different methods of

feeding were as follows :

Gains per hog
iu pounds

Kafir-corn meal dry and alfalfa hay. .90.9

Kafir-corn whole 59.4

Kafir-corn meal fed dry 52.4

Kafir-corn meal fed wet 63.3

"The gain from feeding alfalfa hay with Kafir-corn
meal fed dry, over the meal alone fed dry, is more than
73 per cent.

"The gains per bushel of feed were as follows :

Pounds

Kafir-corn meal dry and 7.83 pounds

alfalfa hay 10.88

Kafir-corn whole 8.56

Kafir-corn meal fed dry 7.48

Kafir-corn meal fed wet 8.09

158 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

'Ten hogs in nine weeks were fed 656 pounds of
alfalfa hay; and as shown above, for each 7.83 pounds of
alfalfa hay fed with the dry Kalir-corn meal, the hogs
gained 3.4 pounds over those having dry Kafir-corn meal
alone — a gain of 868 pounds of pork per ton of alfalfa
hay. These results are not due to the feeding value of
the alfalfa alone, but also to its influence in aiding the
hogs to better digest the Kaflr-corn. The alfalfa hay also
gave a variety to the ration, making it more appetizing
and inducing the hogs to eat more grain. The ten hogs
having grain alone ate 3885 pounds of dry Kafir-corn
meal, while the ten hogs having hay and grain ate 4679
pounds of the Kafir-corn meal and 656 pounds of alfalfa
hay. The hay-fed hogs ate more grain and gained more
for each bushel eaten.

"In a former experiment pigs were pastured through
the summer on alfalfa with a light feeding of corn. After
deducting the probable gain from the corn, the gain per
acre from the alfalfa pasture was y']^ pounds of pork.

"These facts indicate that to produce pork most cheaply
the Kansas farmer must have alfalfa pasture in summer
and alfalfa hay in winter."

The Kansas station also found in another test that one
acre of alfalfa produced pork worth $20.30, while one
acre of rape produced pork worth $10.05.

The Iowa station director estimated that one acre of
alfalfa pastured was worth at least three acres of blue-
grass for pigs. It is claimed by Kansas farmers that an
average acre of alfalfa will pasture 15 pigs, while some
report having pastured 20 or more pigs per acre. Those

ALFALFA FOR SWINE 1 59

who have used alfalfa as a soiling crop for pigs admit,
however, that one acre so utilized is equal to two if not
three used as pasture.

It is argued by feeders that as many hogs may profit-
ably be allowed with cattle that are being fattened on
corn and alfalfa as when fed corn alone, as the feeders
believe in cleaning out the feed-racks every few days and
giving the left-over stems to the hogs. If necessary, a
little corn is added to the hog ration.

A NEBRASKA TEST

The Nebraska experiment station, from a hog-feeding
test made in 1903 reported the following:

"With the alfalfa hay worth $7 per ton, the leaves,
containing 40 per cent more protein, would be worth
approximately $10 per ton. The shorts cost $12.50 per
ton delivered. The dairy department charged 15 cents
per hundred for the skim milk used. Corn was delivered
to the barns at 30 cents per bushel. Adding the usual
rate of 6 cents per hundred for grinding, the corn meal
cost $12 per ton. At these prices, each hundred pounds
of gain in the several lots cost as follows :

Lot I, corn alone $4.48

Lot 2, corn and skim milk 3.97

Lot 3, corn and shorts 3.53

Lot 4, corn and alfalfa 3.40

''This experiment shows that at the market prices
quoted and the proportions used in the experiment, skim
milk will make corn bring four cents more per bushel,
wheat shorts eight cents more, and alfalfa leaves nine cents

l6o THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

more. Assuming that only five per cert of the 252,520,-
173 bushels of corn produced in Nebraska this year is
being fed to hogs as a single food, tliese figures would
go to show that $1, 000,000 more wealth would be added
to the state if wheat shorts or alfalfa were substituted for
one-fifth of the corn fed."

CUT ALFALFA EARLY FOR HOGS

It is especially important that alfalfa intended to be
fed to hogs should be cut early. An experiment at the
Kansas station showed that a ton of early cut and well-
cured alfalfa, fed with grain, produced 868 pounds of
pork while a ton late cut and poorly cured, fed with grain,
produced only 333 pounds. Foi* fattening hogs it is well
to feed about one ton of well-cured alfalfa hay with each
250 bushels of grain.

Farmer's Bulletin No. 215 of the United States Depart-
ment of Agriculture declares that alfalfa is an ideal pas-
ture plant for hogs. ^'There is no danger from bloat and
with a limited number of hogs there is practically no
injury to the alfalfa field. Vigorous alfalfa will support
15 to 25 head of pigs per acre. It is best to limit the
number of pigs to that which will be insufficient to keep
down an alfalfa field. Cuttings of hay may then be made
at intervals and the growth thus rejuvenated. On the
average pigs weighing 30 to 60 pounds in the spring will
make a gain of about 100 pounds each during the season.
Although pigs may be grown and fattened upon alfalfa
alone, it is best to combine tlie alfalfa with some kind of
a grain ration. Alfalfa by itself is too rich in protein to
give a balanced ration. Where pigs are pastured upon

ALFALFA FOR SWINE l6l

alfalfa alone they may be prepared for the market by
feeding for a few weeks upon corn. It is still better,
however, to feed a third to a half of a ration of corn or
other grain during the time of pasturing."

The great mistake made by too many who attempt to
pasture swine on alfalfa is in overstocking. There is a
tendency to keep within a small pasture more stock than
it can comfortably support, with the result that the stand
is gnawed, trampled and rooted out, while the animals
fail to prosper as they would under more rational treat-
ment.

One of the most extensive and successful swine raisers
in Kansas tells the author this: ^'Twenty-five years of
pasturing hogs of all ages on alfalfa has proven conclu-
sively to me that with a fourth to a half grain ration,
while they are on such pasture, will produce in them a
greater growth per day than when in dry lots on full
feeds of corn. Hogs will maintain a reasonable growth,
but not fatten much, on alfalfa pasture alone; I believe
it profitable to feed them some grain while running
on green alfalfa. If it is desired to full-feed hogs,
they will make a rapid fattening growth by increasing
the grain ration while on the pasture, and with the
full grain ration the meat will be nearly as firm as
those of the dry lot, where grain alone has been fed. I
find no distinction on the market between alfalfa-fed
swine and those purely grain-fed, and they sell price and
price alike. The general health of the alfalfa-fed hogs is
equal to that of those maintained on any other feed, and
they are prolific."

1 62

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

The Kansas station realized $i 1.90 per acre from rape
pasture and $24.10 per acre from alfalfa pasture in nine-
ty-eight days. These results were obtained from the fol-
lowing experiments, which were begun July 25 and con-
cluded October 31.

Thirty shoats, averaging fifty-two pounds in weight,
were divided as nearly equally as possible into three lots
of ten each. Lot I was fed on a grain mixture of shorts
one-half, corn meal one- fourth, and Kafir-corn meal one-
fourth, in a dry lot. The other two lots were fed the
same grain ration, but one received rape pasture and the
other alfalfa pasture in addition. Each lot was given
what grain the hogs would eat up clean, and each had
access to water and ashes. The weights of grain con-
sumed and gains made are as follows :

Feed

Grain consumed
in pounds

Total gain, in
pounds

Grain consumed

per 100 lbs. gain,

in pounds

T N^n na.^tnrp

3,801
3,244
3,244

1,023
1,076
1,078

371

TT "Ranp nn <itnrp

301

III. Alfalfa pasture

300

The gains of the three lots are very nearly equal. The
dry lot consumed 557 pounds (or seventy pounds for
every 100 pounds of gain) more grain than the pasture
lots. The lot on rape required one acre of pasture, while
the alfalfa lot used a trifle less than one-half acre.

The lot without pasture required 3.71 pounds of grain
to produce one pound of gain. Assigning the same value
to the grain fed the hogs on rape pasture, we have 877
pounds of pork credited to the grain and 199 pounds
credited to the rape. At six cents per pound, the

ALFALFA FOR SWINE 1 63

price at which hogs were selHng at the close of the
experiment, this would be a credit of $11.90 per
acre for the rape. In a similar manner, the alfalfa is
credited with 201 pounds of pork, equal to $12.05, ^^^
as there was only a half -acre of alfalfa, this makes a rate
of $24.10 per acre.

The cost of preparing the seed bed and seeding the
rape was $1.80 per acre. It was seeded in the feed lots,
on soil that would otherwise have remained idle or would
have grown up to weeds.

The shoats on pasture enjoyed their diet and seemed
satisfied. Those in dry lot seemed to be hankering after
something green, and their appetites seemed unsatisfied
without some kind of roughness. They would even nib-
ble at straw, in a vain attempt to satisfy their cra,ving.

"The experiment," says Prof. D. H. Otis, "emphasizes
the superior value of alfalfa pasture. Where alfalfa is not
available, or where variety is wanted, or it is desired to
utilize otherwise waste land, Dwarf Essex rape, seeded
at the rate of six to eight pounds per acre, any time from
early spring to late summer, will furnish an excellent diet
that is greatly relished by the hogs."

J. E. Woodford, of Coffey county, Kansas, April i,
1905, placed ten choice pure bred Poland-China brood
sows from twelve to eighteen months old that were due
to farrow in the latter days of June, on a five-acre field of
alfalfa. They were given no other feed than the alfalfa
pasturage until they had farrowed and their pigs were a
week old. After that the sows had in addition to the
alfalfa some bran slop until about August 20, when new
corn was fit for feeding. He says : "The sows from the

t64 the book of alfalfa

time they were turned on the alfalfa until the last week in
June made a remarkable growth, besides gaining some-
what in flesh. They did well with their pigs, reared an
average of seven to each sow, and as sucklers they were a
sight to see. The pigs were the most attractive bunch ever
raised in Coffey county, as admitted by our breeding com-
petitors. We weighed a gilt from this lot when six
months and live days old, and her weight of two hundred
and twenty-live pounds was not above the average of the
whole lot. In our lifelong experience in rearing swine we
have found nothing of the grass kind for them that in
value approaches alfalfa.

A plat of thrifty, well-established alfalfa suitably
fenced and used for pasturing swine of whatever age can
scarcely fall short of being among the most profitable
parts of any farm upon which swine husbandry is given
attention.

CHAPTER XIV,

Alfalfa for Horses and Mules

J. W. Robison, a Kansas breeder of Percherons, who
ranks among the foremost anywhere, raises his colts to
three years at an average weight of 1700 pounds and his
four-year-olds at 1900 pounds, ready for the sale yard,
on alfalfa, except such limited quantities of grain as will
make it more nearly a properly balanced food, and inci-
dentally expedite growth. His opinion, fortified by sixty
years of experience, is that alfalfa as pasturage and hay
constitutes by far the most excellent and economical
frame- and muscle-forming food available to the live
stock industry. His colts have alfalfa as their first green
food, and, if foaled in winter, are taught in a few days to
nibble the cut hay. He also says colts reared mainly on
alfalfa have equal spirit and vigor and better dispositions
than those given much grain. His brood mares are made
to rely on alfalfa as their main ration, and for three
months before foaling it is practically, unless in midwin-
ter, their only feed. As a result they are always in ideal
condition, their colts are delivered easily, the mares give
an abundance of nourishing milk, free from feverish ten-
dencies, and the colts are robustly rugged from their
beginning. The cost of rearing colts and horses by this

1 66 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

method, he says, is less, quahty and rapidity of their
growth considered, than by any other of which he has
knowledge.

The well-known J. E. Wing, of Ohio, says: "There
is no one thing so good for the work horse as alfalfa. He
needs less grain, and has more life and spirit than when
fed upon any other hay, yet even working teams can, on
account of its richness, be fed too much. This puts an
undue strain upon their excretory organs to eliminate
the unnecessary food substances from the tissues. The
overfeeding of alfalfa hay to horses has in some localities
caused the use of it to become unpopular, and to raise an
outcry against it. The writer has fed no other hay to his
horses — working teams, driving horses, mares and foals
— for many years, and has yet to observe the first instance
of evil result, save that the driving horses when not used
regularly become soft and easily sweated.

GOOD FOR WORK HORSES

Until recently it was not thought in the eastern states
that alfalfa was an especially good feed for horses. On
the somewhat noted Watson ranch at Kearney, Nebraska,
the grain supply became exhausted one summer when
the prices were high. There was an abundance of alfalfa
hay, and although it was in August and the horses were
at heavy work, such as plowing and ditching, the entire
force of eighty was kept on alfalfa hay and but little
grain, without any injurious effect. They relished the
hay, did the hard work every day and looked as sleek as
if on pasture. Since that time alfalfa hay has been the
principal ration for all of the farm's work horses, colts
and driving stock.

ALFALFA FOR HORSES AND MULES 1 67

In western Kansas farm horses have been wintered on
a daily feed of lo pounds of alfalfa hay and some corn
stover, and thin horses fattened on alfalfa hay and a little
corn.

CRESCEUS EATS AliFALFA

Again, the prevalent notion that it is not good for driv-
ing horses has been contradicted by hundreds of farmers
who use it for such horses, and by hundreds in western
towns who use it for delivery horses, dray horses, and
light drivers, as well. In parts of California it is the only
hay fed to horses. "Cresceus, the great race horse, is
said to have been raised on it and it is said that he is fed
no other hay, even while on the racing circuit." The
same was said of Sysonby, the fleetest Thoroughbred in
the races of 1905. Many of the city transfer companies in
Denver, Kansas City and Omaha use alfalfa hay, claim-
ing that it enables them to reduce their grain ration,
while their horses seem stronger and look better than they
did with the former feed of corn and timothy.

TOO MUCH HAY FED

It is no doubt true that Americans feed their horses
too much hay. It is common among horse owners to let
horses stand to full mangers when not at work. In
London the cab horses, for example, are given hay for
but two hours a day, in the evening. At the end of two
hours the mangers are cleared. Careful testing in
decreasing the timothy hay ration one-half has not shown
that the horses required any more grain than before to
keep them in equally good condition.

l68 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Horses do not need a heavy ration of alfalfa hay. Fed
with grain, probably lo or 15 pounds of it is equal to a
manger full of other hay. As they become accustomed
to the alfalfa it may be increased a little, and the grain
decreased. It is a rich food and should not be used as
freely as hays with less protein.

Prof. L. A. Merrill of the Utah station made six tests
of alfalfa hay in comparison with timothy for horses
under varying conditions of work, and found that it was
less difficult to maintain their weight with alfalfa. The
appearance of the horses in every comparison was in
favor of the alfalfa-fed horse, and no ill results were
noted on their health by long-continued alfalfa feeding.
Fourteen-hundred pound horses at hard work could be
maintained in condition on 32.6 pounds of alfalfa hay
per day, and at rest 20 pounds was sufficient for the
same horses.

The quantity of hay fed on most farms could b^* ^-e-
duced at least one-half

With all its merits alfalfa hay is by no means a prop-
erly balanced ration for all purposes, and those unac-
quainted with this fact are liable to feed it, exclusively or
otherwise, in such quantities as are both extravagant and
harmful. D. C. Smead, a veterinarian of note, in writmg
about using the hay in too great quantities, especially in
feeding horses, says this :

"There is more danger in deranging the digestion ot
man or beast by an excess of protein than by over-
feeding on a carbonaceous food. The proteins in food
are more easily acted upon by the digestive fluids, and
thus more easily digested and carried into the blood,

ALFALFA FOR HORSES AND MULES 1 69

where an excess means work for the kidneys to carry It
off. We can founder a horse more easily on wheat than
on corn for this very reason. Alfalfa has a nutritive
ratio of practically i to 4. An ordinary 1000-pound
horse, if given all it will eat of it, will eat from thirty to
forty pounds in twenty- four hours. As the alfalfa con-
tains about II per cent of easily digested proteins, you
will readily see that the horse would be taking into his
system nearly four and one-half pounds of protein.

''About two and one-half pounds of digestible protein
is all that an ordinary horse or cow of a thousand pounds
weight, when at work or in milk, can utilize. In the
alfalfa hay we have nearly twice as much as is needed.
If it were not for some of it being physicked off, we
would soon have an animal with overworked kidneys or
muscular stiffness of a rheumatic nature. In case of a
mare in foal, when fed on alfalfa and nothing else, the
chances are she would drop her colt prematurely, or if
it went full time, the colt would be a nice, fat, little, plump
fellow, with little vitality and with a tendency to rickets
or bowel disease, all because the alfalfa was too narrow
a ration.

"Now if we fed this mare alfalfa hay once a day or
even twice a day, in moderate quantities, say fifteen
pounds, and gave her one feed of straw or timothy hay or
corn fodder, which are carbonaceous foods, with a quart
of oats a day to impart a little nerve force, we would have
her practically on right lines. Alfalfa, good as it is, is
not an all-sufficient food for any animal. The danger lies
in sections where it is being thrown to the animals relish-
ing it so well and the owner having it in such abundance

lyO THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

that it will come to be considered all-sufficient, and then
trouble is liable to follow. But fed with judgment it is
the best of all protein foods, and will enable the farmer
to feed wisely and well many of the unmarketable rough
foods he raises, like straw and corn stover, the one bal-
ancing the other."

Here and there are norses with digestive apparatus not
suited for the best use of alfalfa, but they are rare excep-
tions rather than the rule.

PRODUCES RAPID GROWTH

One of the foremost horse breeders in America, who
constantly maintains upwards of one hundred head of
various ages, writes the author this :

*'In my experience of twenty-five years in pasturing
horses on alfalfa, results have convinced me that it pro-
duces more bone, muscle and blood in horses in less time
than any other pasturage with which I am acquainted.
But I believe it profitable in raising the best horses to
also use a moderate grain ration, to stimulate rapid
growth and early development ; my horses, however, have
shown no ill effects from pasturing on alfalfa without
grain, or other feed, and I have found such pasturing
conducive to health and prolificacy, maturing animals
equal for service to any reared otherwise. I have raised
three-year-olds grown on alfalfa and a light grain ration
to exceed a ton in weight, carrying all the good qualities
of the breed to which they belonged. Further, 1 find
using alfalfa as a horse pasture a much more economical
method of raising horses than any other."

Alfalfa One Year Old Showing Effects of Inoculation

Plants on the left inoculated with "nitro-culture," those on the right
not inoculated

v*#«

j. f

■Hi

A Good Type of a Four-year-old Alfalfa Plant

grown on Kansas upland. Height, May 28, 36 inches. The crown shows the
effect of splitting with a disk harrow

CHAPTER XV.

Alfalfa and Sheep-Raising

The day is not far distant when the free "range" will
be practically eliminated from the stockman's assets. His
stock must be reared on cultivated crops instead of by
grazing on grasses that cost nothing. Pound for pound
alfalfa is more fattening for young lambs or old sheep
than clover. Lambs soiled on alfalfa cut daily make a
phenomenal growth and are as a rule free from disease.
They may be carried through the summer on a light feed-
ing of green alfalfa and general pasture or farm grazing,
and fattened in the fall on alfalfa hay and cowpeas or a
little grain, at a generous profit.

Thousands of sheep and lambs are every year brought
from Colorado and Montana to western Kansas and Ne-
braska and fattened for market on alfalfa hay and grain,
making for these commodities a convenient market at
good prices.

HOW TO PREVENT BLOATING

Pasturing sheep or lambs on alfalfa is dangerous,
although there are sheep raisers who make it a main
reliance. One man reports absolute freedom from loss for
several years, and his method is to have his sheep pen
adjoining the alfalfa field and early in April when the
alfalfa is just beginning to put on its green, he arranges

172 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

a "creep" for the lambs to go through into the field, and
lets them stay there at pleasure. They soon wean them-
selves; the "creep" is then closed and a safe pen in the
alfalfa field is used for shelter from rains and protection
from dogs. When necessary to fasten them in at night to
guard against dogs or wolves, he cuts green alfalfa each
evening to give them with a little grain in the morning
before turning them back to the field. The lambs grow
rapidly and none ever bloat. Nevertheless, most sheep
raisers will continue to reckon alfalfa pasture too expen-
sive when it costs so many animals for the privilege of
its use. Safety is the exception, and not the rule.

Owners of large flocks of sheep claim to be able to
market lambs from alfalfa pasture, or when soiled, at
one-half to one-third the cost of maintenance with any
other crop. Green or cured it seems to hasten develop-
ment and the lambs are in fine condition for fattening in
October, or the ewes to put into the breeding pen.

The Nebraska station in a winter experiment of 98
days with one hundred 50-pound lambs, divided into dif-
ferent lots and variously fed with prairie hay, alfalfa hay,
shelled corn, wheat bran, oats and linseed meal figured at
the prices then current, reached these results :

1. The alfalfa-fed lambs consumed 1.34 pounds of
alfalfa hay and one pound of grain per day as against
.88 pound of prairie hay and .89 pound of grain con-
sumed by the prairie hay fed lambs.

2. The alfalfa-fed lambs made fifty-two per cent
greater gains than the lambs fed prairie hay and the same
grain ration.

ALFALFA AND SHEEP-RAISING 1 73

3. The lambs fed prairie hay with corn and i6 per
cent of oil meal made 26 per cent larger gains than the
lots fed prairie hay with a grain ration of shelled corn,
or shelled corn with 25 per cent of bran or oats added

In the twenty-fifth annual report of the Ontario agri-
cultural college are some interesting reports on feeding
lambs on various foods. The feeding periods were 74
days for the first experiment and 42 for the second.

By these tests alfalfa hay was shown to be slightly
better for the lambs in every w^ay than clover hay under
practically equivalent conditions.

The first and second cuttings of alfalfa were equal in
value ; the third cutting was slightly better than the first.

W. L. Carlyle, dean of the Colorado agricultural col-
lege declares alfalfa hay is the basis of the feeding indus-
try in northern Colorado. ''Without alfalfa our agri-
culture would be of very little moment. Alfalfa forms
the basis of all our sugar-beet growing. It not only
enriches the soil in which it grows, but prepares it for
the growing of sugar-beets in a way that no other crop
or system or cultivation can, and while doing this prepar-
atory work it yields an enormous tonnage of the most
valuable feed for fattening sheep and cattle. Usually
lambs are given free access to the hay and are allowed
to eat all of it that they will."

Lamb feeding in northern Colorado has been carried
on quite extensively for a number of years, and with such
success that "Fort Collins lambs" are recognized in the
eastern markets as superior to anything that is shipped
from any other section of the country. The name 'Tort

174 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Collins sheep" has extended to all of northern Colorado,
just as the "Greeley potato" is the term given to all
potatoes grown in the northern part of the state.

In recent years many thousands of old ewes have been
fed at the various sugar factories upon beet pulp,
alfalfa hay and corn. The old ewes thrive much better
upon the beet pulp than the lambs or younger sheep.
It produces a very desirable sappiness of flesh, and when
these sheep have been on this feed with alfalfa hay for
two or three months and are then finished with corn,
they bring the highest price on the market

CHAPTER XVI.

Alfalfa and Bees

THE BEE FERTILIZES THE ALFALFA

It has been discovered that the honey bee is of even
more importance to the alfalfa than the alfalfa is to the
bee. The wonderful strength and speed of the bees take
them long distances for their food and they have recourse
to a great variety of plants. But the peculiar construc-
tion of the alfalfa blossom renders it unable to fertilize
itself and its shape makes cross fertilization very difficult.
In the marvelous "balance of good" in nature, alfalfa,
like thousands of other plants, is aided in its lease on life
by the insect world. It is not known just how many
insects or birds assist this remarkable plant, but the
honey bee is the most conspicuous, the most industrious,
the most eager, and certainly the most useful.

Careful observations have been made of seed pods
grown near colonies of bees, and also of those so far from
any bee colonies that it was safely assumed no bees had
visited the fields producing the pods. In every case it
was found that those from nearby fields had from 50 to
75 per cent more seeds than the others and that they were
larger and more perfectly developed. In Colorado and
western Kansas, where bee culture has been greatly
developed in recent years, it is found that the alfalfa seed
crop in fields nearest to bee colonies is much heavier and
of better quality than that of fields but a few miles away.

176 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

At the Kansas experiment station a small plat of vigor-
ous alfalfa was covered just before coming into bloom
with mosquito netting supported on sticks. It was there-
fore knowji that no bees nor other insects could come into
contact with the blossoms. Later a careful examination
disclosed that the pods which had formed were entirely
without seeds.

HOW THE FERTILIZING IS ACCOMPIilSHED

As suggesting something of the relation of bees and
like insects to the cross fertilization of alfalfa blossoms
and consequent increased seed production, Prof. S. J.
Hunter, entomologist of the University of Kansas, who
has spent much time making critical observations of bees
in the alfalfa fields of the Middle West^ writes the fol-
lowing for this volume:

''Every farmer is familiar with the evil effects of con-
tinuous inbreeding among live stock. In plant life this
same continuous fertilization of one plant by its own pol-
len works no less injury to its race of plants. To prevent
such inbreeding among plants nature has devised several
means. One of these is illustrated in the alfalfa blossom.
If the reader will tear away the purple blossom exposing
the true organs of fertilization, it will be seen that the
central round body, the stigma, designed to receive the
pollen grains, is higher than the surrounding, elongated,
pollen-bearing anthers. It will become evident, then,
that it will be possible and most likely for the pollen to
drop to the base of the flower without coming in contact
with the stigma, and the flower will thus go unfertilized.
This is as nature intended it should be, namely, that the

ALFALFA AND BEES 1 77

plant should go unfertilized if it could be fertilized only
by the pollen of its own blossom. Provision, however, is
made for cross fertilization, that is, fertilization from the
pollen of another flower.

"The color of the flower itself, its fragrance, and
finally the sip of nectar secreted at the base of the flower,
are all intended to attract flower-frequenting insects.
Chief among these is the honey bee. The fragrance of
the flower draws the insect from afar. The color of the
flower reveals its exact location to the insect and when
the tongue of the bee is inserted into the flower, in quest
of the coveted nectar, the stamens and pistil spring up,
striking the under part of the hairy-covered head. These
hairs are barbed and readily retain the pollen, so that the
flower both discharges its own pollen and also takes from
the head and breast of the bee pollen previously collected
from other flowers. Obviously, the first flower which
the insect visits is not cross-fertilized. Practical obser-
vations upon the relations existing between the honey
bee and the alfalfa plant are of value in illustrating the
effects of the bees upon alfalfa.

'A case in point : A hundred well matured pods were
collected upon an alfalfa field less than one-half mile
away from a large apiary. A similar number were taken
from another field. The two fields were as nearly identi-
cal as possible in the matter of soil, culture, and condi-
tions governing the vegetable growth of the alfalfa plant.
The second field, however, was about twenty-five miles
away from a colony of bees. No bees were observed in
the field and since there was no timber, nor other place
of shelter where bees might possibly live, it seemed reason-

178 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

ably safe to say that there were no wild bees in the vicin-
ity. An examination of the seed pods from each of the
two localities was made and the number of seeds counted.
In the field near the apiary the average number of seeds
in a pod was found to be 5.58. The seeds were plump and
the pods were numerous upon a cluster. The pods them-
selves had several spirals. In the other field, the one
remote from a known colony of bees, the average number
of seeds in a pod was 3.35. The seeds in at least one-
third of the pods were small and shriveled. The pods
were few in the cluster, short, and with but few spirals.
The seed crop of the first field could be estimated on this
basis at two-thirds greater than that of the second field.
*Tt is a well-known fact that the seed yield per acre for
Red clover is comparatively small. Red clover belongs
to the same family of plants as alfalfa and it, too, is
dependent upon insects for fertilization of its flowers.
The work, however, is restricted largely to the bumble
bee, since but few other insects have tongues long enough
to reach down to the nectar of the clover blossom and
consequently do not visit the clover blossom and bring
about proper formation of seed. So in proportion as
the bumble bees thrive, the clover flourishes. Alfalfa,
however, is not so limited in its number of insect assist-
ants, since the flower itself is shorter and the nectar
Accordingly accessible to a greater number of insects."

THE HONEY PRODUCT

Alfalfa raisers find it to their advantage to have a few
Stands of bees. As the original cost is slight and the bees
provide their own food, go after the raw material for

ALFALFA AND BEES 1 79

the manufacture of honey, demand but slight attention
and make such bountiful returns, bee culture has come to
be a valuable ''side line" for the farm. As blooms are to
be found in alfalfa districts every day from early May to
late October, the bees have a constant opportunity for
service.

Alfalfa honey is white and clear, in an extremely deli-
cate comb, has a delicious flavor, and an aroma that is
delightful. One authentic report from a western Kansas
county is of a single hive that contained nearly two hun-
dred pounds, and of another having ninety-six pounds.
The owner of these had twenty-five acres of alfalfa which
in one year yielded him over one hundred tons of choice
hay besides the honey. The next year he increased his
apiary to fifty stands.

While the average yield per hive elsewhere varies from
fifteen to thirty pounds, the average in the alfalfa-growing
territory is far higher. Thus the financial returns of
alfalfa may be greatly increased and in some instances
doubled by having, say, two colonies of bees for each
acre. Or^ if only a part of the alfalfa raisers in a neigh-
borhood keep bees, this ratio could be doubled or trebled
by those who do. Unlike other trespassers on neighbors'
fields the bees do the neighbors a distinct favor, by fer-
tilizing their alfalfa.

CHAPTER XVIl.

Alfalfa and Poultry

BETTER THAN MEDICINE

At first it might seem that too much was claimed for
alfalfa if written of as a specially valuable adjunct in
poultry raising. The poultry industry of the United
States is making wonderful advances, and the volume of
its returns is enormous ; the figures are well-nigh incred-
ible. One of the handicaps is disease. Poultry men are
a unit in saying that where alfalfa in any form can be
supplied to poultry disease is almost unknown. Fowls
like it green, and whether allowed the run of the field or
it is given to them daily they eat it greedily and thrive.
Many farmers say emphatically that the hens laj more
and larger eggs when allowed alfalfa in any form. Its
nitrogen contributes to the albumen of the eggs and to
the growth of the young chickens.

MAY INFLUENCE EGG FERTILITY

Scientific tests of feeding alfalfa to poultry have not
been made, but, no doubt, will be in the near future. If it
is found that the eggs are larger when the hens are given
alfalfa, it may also be found that the percentage of fertil-
ity is greater. For years the complaint has been made
by farmers and poultrymen that there are too many infer-
tile eggs. The financial losses are great if a fourth or

ALFALFA AND POULTRY l8l

third of the eggs used for incubation prove infertile. It
would seem that the same elements that contribute to
the growth of the hatched chicken should also add to the
vitality of the embryo, increasing the percentage of fer-
tility and adding to the vigor of the newly hatched chick

AIDS IN PREPARING FOR MARKET

The growth of young chickens is greatly aided by
alfalfa. One man reports an experiment with five hun-
dred capons, hatched early in March, that averaged in
December nearly eight pounds and sold in the city market
at nineteen cents per pound. They were given the run
of a patch of alfalfa for a time and ate little other feed.
Later they were put in the yards and fed with alfalfa cut
into short lengths, with a little grain; still later alfalfa
meal was added, with a little wheat. Then, finally, alfalfa
hay was cut and steamed and added to the ration. The
cost of maintenance and fattening must have been small
compared with the large returns.

This item is from the Harper, Kansas, Sentinel: A
subscriber tells us that the mites and chicken lice were
completely driven out of his barn and hen house, as soon
as he had alfalfa hay put in his barn and used it in the
house for nests. He says that before the hay was cut,
it was impossible to keep a horse in the barn or to have
a hen hatch a nest of eggs, but neither mites nor lice can
be found now. This is a new use for alfalfa, but if it
does the work, it will be lots cheaper than buying poison-
ous decoctions and spraying pumps to get rid of lice and
mites, the greatest pests to poultry raisers.

CHAPTER XVIIL

Alfalfa Food Preparation

The growing appreciation of alfalfa as a stock and
dairy food and the expense of baling and shipping it as
hay, the loss of leaves, and the liability to heat and mold
unless well cured, have led to the manufacture from it of
several food preparations. These in some cases are made
by simply grinding into a meal, and in others by mixing
the meal with molasses, or a variety of food products, and
assumed condiments and appetizers.

The Colorado station in a feeding test concluded that
the ground alfalfa was not an economical feed for fatten-
ing pigs. With cut alfalfa hay costing $8 a ton and
ground alfalfa $i6 a ton the cost of producing one hun-
dred pounds of gain with the former was $2.62 and with
the alfalfa meal $3.12. With corn and cut alfalfa hay
fed in equal parts by weight the cost of producing one
hundred pounds of gain was $2.72. With corn and
alfalfa meal fed in equal parts by weight the cost was
$3.96. It is not improbable, however, that better results
would have been obtained if a less proportion of ground
or cut alfalfa had been fed. It is also probable that the
hog's grinding machinery is better adapted to his digest-
ive apparatus than is any other.

ALFALFA FOOD PREPARATIONS 1 83

PROFESSOR COTTRELIj ON AliFAIiFA MEAL

It is worth while, however, to consider the arguments
in favor of grinding alfalfa. Prof. H. M. Cottrell says :

"Grinding alfalfa increases its digestibility. How
much has not been determined. Grinding increases the
digestibility of corn and oats as much as 14 per cent, and
of wheat 10 per cent. It is probable that there is a greater
gain in digestibility from grinding alfalfa, a coarse feed,
than there is from grinding grain.

"When alfalfa is to be fed at a distance from the place
where grown it must be baled for shipping. When the
bales are opened and scattered in feeding a considerable
part of the leaves is wasted. Over 8 per cent of the
protein in alfalfa is found in the leaves, and the loss of
protein from leaves wasted in feeding baled hay is fre-
quently from one- fourth to one-half of the total amount
in the original hay. With ground alfalfa there is no
waste in feeding either from leaf or stem. Alfalfa
ground is in the best condition for shipping and handling
cheaply and without waste.

"Ground alfalfa is not only a good feed itself but when
mixed with grain aids in the digestion of the other feeds,
enabling the feeder to get more out of his home grown
grain.

"Experiments have not been made to determine the
exact value of this diluting effect of alfalfa meal in
increasing the feed value of heavy grains. Tests have
shown that corn-and-cob meal has the same feeding value
as an equal weight of clear corn meal. Practically worth-
less ground cobs by their 'lightening up' the heavy corn
meal add 20 per cent to the feeding value of the meal

184 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

with which they are mixed. It is reasonable to beheve
that a rich feed Hke ground alfalfa has even a greater in-
fluence when mixed with corn meal. The more intimate
the mixture the greater the benefits from alfalfa, and for
this reason ground alfalfa is far superior to the whole hay.

''Grinding alfalfa hay reduces the power needed to
digest and assimilate it. It takes power for an animal
to chew the feed, digest it and bring about the chemical
changes that convert it into flesh or milk. All this energy
is taken from the actual food material in the alfalfa.
Experiments show that a much larger amount of food
value is used up in this way with coarse feeds than with
concentrated fine feeds. In corn, a concentrated feed
easily worked up in the animal's body, three-fourths of
the protein actually in the hay is digested ; and in straw,
a still coarser feed, only one-tenth. Forty-eight per cent
of all the energy in coarse hay is used up in chewing and
digesting it, while only twenty per cent of the energy in
oats is used in these processes. This shows the value of
preparing feed in such a way as to require the least effort
on the part of the animal to use it.

" In a well constructed mill it requires one horse-power
ten hours to grind alfalfa sufficient for a month's ration
for a dairy cow in full milk. This indicates what a sav-
ing the grinding of alfalfa makes in its effective use by
an animal.

^'Experiments show that good alfalfa hay and wheat
bran have practically the same value in feeding for milk.
In a test made of bran and alfalfa meal, two lots of cows
were selected that were giving equal weights of milk.
One lot was fed bran, the other lot the same weight of

ALFALFA FOOD PREPARATIONS 1 85

alfalfa meal. For each lOO pounds of milk given by the
cows fed bran, 141 pounds were yielded by the cpws fed
alfalfa meal."

As an example, ''Alfamo" is the name of one of the
numerous new feeds on the market, having alfalfa meal
as its principal ingredient. After a year of experiment-
ing with grinding and mixing various feeds it was deter-
mined by the manufacturers that a feed made of three
parts alfalfa meal and one part beet-sugar molasses
would possess a very high value. The ingredients are
mixed by a special apparatus and subjected to a process
which retains and preserves the high nutriment of the
feed.

Prof. Samuel Avery of the Nebraska station made an
analysis of ''Alfamo," which showed the following com-
position :

Per cent

Moisture 2.74

Protein 1 5.04

Carbohydrates 50.48

Ash 13.87

Crude fiber 17-85

Professor Avery also states : "This feed was made by
mixing molasses with alfalfa meal which contained
16.15 per cent protein. It will be noticed that the protein
content is not greatly reduced, while a large quantity of
nutritious matter has been added in the molasses. An
analysis of the molasses used in this product, showed
practically fifty per cent sugar, and it should be remem-
bered that the sugar in molasses is all digestible and

l86 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

ready for the animal without extra effort on the animal's
part, which is not so in corn or other foods, strong in
carbohydrates from which the starch must be extracted
by the digestive apparatus."

SOLVING THE TRANSPORTATION PROBLEM

Several mills for the manufacture of alfalfa foods have
been and are being established, and it is reasonable to
assume that the use of these foods will become quite gen-
eral in cities and districts remote from the alfalfa regions.
Whether or not the actual feeding value is appreciably
increased, or the nutritive constituents made more thor-
ougly available, is as yet not determined by sufficient
tests, nor has it been determined by any station test that
any factory food preparation is more economical than
alfalfa hay, where the hay can be obtained well cured
and with a reasonable proportion of its leaves. It is
altogether probable, however, that alfalfa meal will be
more economical in distant cities than baled hay. If these
preparations of alfalfa prove to be satisfactory to con-
sumers in distant markets, it will lead to the multiplication
of mills in the alfalfa regions, thereby decreasing the
cost of transportation and giving the grower a wider
and probably a better market. The use of the meal or
the food preparations is likely to prove most especially
valuable for dairy cows and poultry.

CHAPTER XIX

Alfalfa for Town and City

While the preceding chapters have deah with almost
every phase of alfalfa, it is thought well to emphasize the
advantages of its more general use in cities and towns.
In the minds of many there is an undefined impression
that alfalfa is for farm consumption only. Often when
first introduced into a community, farmers who raise
more than they have stock to consume, complain that it
is difficult to sell in small towns.

THE TOWX COW NEEDS ALFAIjFA

Milk producers who know it best concede that alfalfa
is an invaluable feed in the dairy, closely akin to wheat
bran in results and usually much less expensive. In the
average small town or city there is about one cow for
every ten or fifteen people. Therefore, in a town of one
thousand population, there will probably be seventy-five
to one hundred cows. If alfalfa will increase the quan-
tity of their milk and butterfat, giving a product at a
lower cost than the concentrated foods, it should be more
used. But as yet it is not generally used, because it is
not understood and appreciated.

The best time to secure a supply is when it is being har-
vested and can be taken directly from the field. If the
mow is large enough for three or more tons, a ton can
be stored from each of the different cuttings, and be

l88 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

cured in superior condition almost regardless of the
weather. It would be found a most economical feed for
the family cow and, if fowls are kept, it could constitute
one-third of their ration, adding to growth and to the
Ggg supply.

A CHEAP FEED FOR HORSES

The larger users of hay in the towns and cities are
liverymen, deliverymen and teamsters. These have been
unacquainted with or doubtful of the utility of alfalfa
and have never given it a fair trial, or possibly any trial
at all. Those who have used it and thought its effects
harmful have perhaps not understood its highly nutri-
tious character and may have fed it in too large quan-
tities. Having such a large protein content it should not
be used with the same prodigality as prairie hay. For
driving horses it should be cut when more matured than
for other stock, or when about half in bloom, and should
be well cured. Fed then, in reasonable rations of from
ten to twenty pounds a day, livery horses may be kept in
vigorous thrift with a small additional quantity of grain,
and thus a saving be made of twenty to thirty per cent
in cost of maintenance. In the alfalfa districts there may
be found many liverymen who, having had experience
with alfalfa hay, feed their horses little of anything else.
In the last few years there has been a growing demand
for alfalfa hay for southern towns and cities.

The coat and general appearance of horses fed alfalfa
are improved, as compared with those fed timothy or
prairie hay and the tendency to constipation and indiges-
tion is greatly lessened. It is rarely that an alfalfa-fed
animal of any kind is constipated.

CHAPTER XX

Alfalfa in Crop Rotation

MAINTAINING FERTILITY

It is a fundamental principle of the best agriculture
that every acre should be kept constantly at its highest
productive capacity. In one sense the farm is a great
machine for the production of food. All prosperity must
originate on and emanate from the farm ; the farmer is
really the only original producer. The measure of the
world's material success must be the relative amount of
the product of the farm. As lands decrease in fertility,
the cost of living increases in direct proportion. As fer-
tility decreases, land values decrease and rural popula-
tion decreases. Already there are districts in America
that are almost depopulated because of the barrenness of
what was, but a short while ago, fertile land.

The fundamental principle of maintaining fertility is
to restore to the land annually those chemical elements
taken from it by the crops grown. A prominent importer
of horses relates that he was once entertained on a great
horse farm in France, whose owner told him that much
of the farm had been in cultivation for over eight hun-
dred years and was, he believed, as productive now as
ever in its history.

Alfalfa ranks as the greatest fertilizing plant known
to scientific agriculture. All cereal crops use large quan-

190 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

tities of nitrogen. A field cropped for years in corn or
wheat will come to have too little nitrogen for the pro-
duction of a profitable crop. Alfalfa, as has already been
stated, after the first few months of its life obtains its
whole supply of nitrogen from the air; in fact, more than
it really needs. As a soil improver it possesses at least
five valuable properties :

1. It gathers nitrogen from the air for its own main-
tenance and a surplus that is constantly being added to
the soil.

2. It is a deep feeder and its roots penetrate the earth
to extraordinary depths, drawing toward the surface and
utilizing moisture and valuable mineral elements that
other crops would never reach, leaving the desirable
elements there for future crops, of whatever kinds.

3. By capillarity, these roots and rootlets draw up
moisture from below the surface until it modifies the
very top soil, changing wonderfully the nature of the
field. The analysis of a cubic foot of earth of a flourish-
ing alfalfa field shows a marvelous change in moisture
content since the sowing.

4. The mere mechanical effect of the extensive root
system can scarcely be over-estimated. As soon as ger-
mination begins the plant starts its tiny roots downward
on the search for moisture. Roots four feet long have
been found on alfalfa but four months old; roots nine
feet long have been found below alfalfa but nine months
old. After the taproot reaches a few inches below the
surface, it sends out smaller roots that have a lateral
growth of but a few inches, when they too, take a down-
ward course for moisture and for mineral elements needed

ALFALFA IN CROP ROTATION I9I

for the growth above. These first smaller roots decay
and others start out from the taproot lower down.
These decay and still others start. The decaying roots
add humus to the soil, and the openings left by them form
a wonderful system of channels for the penetration of
air and water into the soil. The erstwhile compact earth
is honeycombed and air and water penetrate the graves
of the dead roots until, when the alfalfa field is ready to
be used for a different crop, the soil has been wonderfully
changed not only in its chemical elements but in its physi-
cal character.

5. The regular deposit of alfalfa leaves, from the
cuttings, under the best care, has been estimated at one-
half ton or more per acre every year. As these leaves
contain a great percentage of protein, it can readily be
seen that they make a heavy contribution to the soil's
fertility.

VALUE OF STUBBLE AND ROOTS

When in his system of rotation the farmer is ready to
plow up his alfalfa, he has another inestimable contribu-
tion to the land's fertility in the stubble and roots. It is
not recommended to plow under any considerable growth
as a green manure, as the hay crop is too valuable. Its
market value would buy more fertilizers than the same
growth is worth for humus. After a field has stood for
five or six years, the roots have added largely to the
humus content. Prof. W. P. Headden of Colorado, esti-
mated that the fertilizing value of the stubble and 6^
inches of roots plowed under is about $20 per acre, while
the value of the stubble and entire root system is not less
than $35 per acre.

192 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

The New Jersey station estimated that the amounts of
plant food gathered by an acre of alfalfa in two years
were equivalent in nitrogen to that contained in 3500
pounds of nitrate of soda; in phosphoric acid to that con-
tained in 600 pounds of boneblack superphosphate, and
in potash to the amount contained in 1200 pounds of
muriate of potash, or equal to what would have cost $124.

EFFECTS ON SUCCEEDING CROPS

The Wyoming station, at Laramie, under direction of
Prof. B. C Buffum (Bui. No. 44) made some tests that
proved the market fertilizing value of alfalfa. A plot of
ground that had been in alfalfa for five years adjoined a
plot of the same size that had been in varied crops, wheat,
oats, potatoes, etc. After the alfalfa sod was broken the
two plots were prepared together and planted crosswise
to wheat, oats and potatoes, with half of each on the
broken sod and half on the other plot with the following
yields and gains :

After Alfalfa After Other Crops Money Gain

Wheat 30 bu 18 bu $8 to $12

Oats 78 bu 37 bu 16

Potatoes ..81 bu....52 bu 16

Stating the results in another way, Prof. Bufifum says :
**The value of alfalfa harvested from one-half acre of

land for five years was about $50 more than the cost of

producing it.

"The value of potatoes and grain from an adjoining

half-acre for five years was about $44 more than the cost

of producing, at local prices.

ALFALFA IN CROP ROTATION 1 93

"When the alfalfa half-acre was plowed and planted
to wheat it produced $8 to $12 more value in wheat per
acre than the land which had grown potatoes and grain
before.

"When the alfalfa half -acre was plowed and planted to
oats it produced $16 worth of grain more than land
which had grown potatoes and grain before.

''When the alfalfa half-acre was plowed and planted
to potatoes it gave $16 worth more of potatoes per acre
than was obtained from land which had grown potatoes
and grain before.

"By growing alfalfa the increase of yields and values
were produced with absolutely no cost for fertilizing the
land."

This gain, it will be noted, cost nothing in the way of
fertilization, as the alfalfa had every year been more
profitable than the other crops. A Marion county, Kan-
sas, manager of large estates reports that a field of wheat
after alfalfa averaged forty bushels per acre while an
adjoining field of equal original fertility averaged but
fifteen bushels. These results have been duplicated in
innumerable instances where alfalfa fields have been
plowed and planted to other crops. A Colorado man
who farms 1000 acres, with 200 acres of it in alfalfa, says
he cannot afford not to plow his alfalfa after he has had
from it four years' crops ; that it is necessary to maintain
the general farm fertility and obtain big crops of corn,
oats and potatoes. In the potato districts of Colorado
alfalfa is used systematically as a rotation to maintain the
yields and quality of their potatoes, both of which are so
famous.

194 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

In the corn belt, which may be said to extend from the
central meridian of Kansas to Pennsylvania, alfalfa used
in rotation will do much to prevent the disgrace of rais-
ing an average of but twenty or twenty-five bushels of
corn to the acre. And so in what were once famous
wheat belts, alfalfa will restore the crop records, if prop-
erly used in a rotation.

ROTATION A NECESSITY

Some experiment station men insist that where alfalfa
is allowed to stand for many years it will cease to have a
fertilizing value; that alfalfa draws heavily on the potash
and phosphoric acid in the soil, and will after, say, eight
or ten years begin to deplete it of these important ele-
ments. Therefore they insist that alfalfa should not be
allowed to stand for over six or eight years unless it is
given an annual top-dressing of manure. They favor
plowing up the alfalfa after about five years and crop-
ping to corn or cotton.

Former Governor Hoard in speaking of the value of
alfalfa as compared with that of clover in a crop rotation
says that, "alfalfa having a much larger root development
goes deeper down, thoroughly subsoils the ground, brings
up phosphorus and potash from the lower strata, and
leaves much more vegetable matter to decay and furnish
humus. Nothing else we have ever tried equals alfalfa
for putting the soil in good tilth."

SPREADS THE BACTERIA OVER THE FARM

Men who are raising alfalfa for use in a regular rota-
tion never leave it over six years ; many prefer five, while

ALFALFA IN CROP ROTATION I95

Others make it a rule to plow up their fields every four
years; thus the bacteria becomes fixed in the soil of the
whole farm. Such farmers use alfalfa as they formerly
used clover, to restore fertility needed for profitable crops
of grain, hay and forage.

The sod is hard to plow. It is well to do the breaking
immediately after the season's cutting, if possible; disk
and harrow it several times and sow to rye for winter
pasture, and plant to corn or cotton or potatoes in the
spring. The winter's freezing will help to put it in fine
tilth. If it is desired to follow with wheat (not always
advisable, however, on account of causing a too rank
growth), the sod may be plowed after the year's second
mowing, disked and sowed to rye to prevent the soil from
leaching.

Breaking up a well set alfalfa field is no trifling matter.
It may be done with three heavy horses, but it is hard
work for them, and they will not be able to break more
than one acre a day. An authority says the best plan is to
use five heavy horses — three in the lead and two on the
end of the beam. They can go right along and plow two
acres a day. Alfalfa roots are very tough and strong when
the plants have attained full growth, and they give a jerky
motion to the plow, which is severe on horses' shoulders.
A cast steel plow is the best to use and if it is tempered
right a file can just cut it. It can be hammered out thin
at the blacksmith's shop when it becomes too thick to file
easily. "The reason for filing, rather than using the
hard, thin edge as in other plowing is that the edge needs
to be rough as well as thin, or the roots will slip along
the sloping edge of the share and not be cut." It is

196 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

important that the furrow turned shall not be wider than
the plowshare will all the time cut clean, as any main
roots that are left uncut will send up a more vigorous
growth of stems than before, which, in another cultivated
crop will be the same as weeds.

Alfalfa Plant and Roots Showing Bacteria Nodules

CHAPTER XXL

Nitro-Culture

AN OLD-NEW THEORY

The inoculation of soil, like many other lately exploited
theories, has no doubt been known for hundreds of years.
There are evidences that it was practiced in England at
least a century ago, and it is thought to be an old custom
among the Chi;iese. Some space was given to ''soil inoc-
ulation" in a preceding chapter, attention there being
devoted to the simple methods of infecting soil with
bacteria.

IMPORTANT DISCO\TERIES

Some twenty years ago a German scientist, Nobbe,
discovered that the small nodules found on the roots of
the leguminous plants contained bacteria that took nitro-
gen from the air and transferred it to the plant. It had
been known that cultivated soils were rapidly losing their
original supply of nitrogen and there seemed no practi-
cable way of restoring it in sufficient quantity. Commer-
cial nitrogen costs fifteen cents per pound and the
expense of applying it to the land to equalize the loss
from an ordinary farm crop is almost equal to the value
of a crop. Hence, the discovery that the legumes were
nitrogen-gathering, by means of these bacteria, was

198 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

hailed as one of the greatest of the age. With milHons
of pounds of nitrogen over his land there seemed now a
method whereby the farmer could utilize some needed
portions of it. The bacteria live in tubercles upon the
roots of various leguminous plants, such as Red clover,
Sweet clover, Bur clover, alfalfa, cowpeas, garden peas,
vetches and beans. These tubercles are the home of the
bacteria, minute forms of vegetable life, too small to be
seen with the naked eye. The legumes have no power in
themselves to draw nitrogen from the air, yet these bac-
teria seem to have the power to absorb the free nitrogen
and cause it to combine with other elements, forming
nitrates or other assimilable compounds suitable for
plant food. It has also been demonstrated that, as a rule,
there are different species of these bacteria for different
species of legumes.

After German scientists had made their discoveries,
one of the existence of these bacteria on the roots of the
legumes and another that in the laboratory, these organ-
isms could be bred and multiplied, they seemed unable to
develop them of sufficient vigor to survive any general
distribution. At this point Dr. George T. Moore of the
United States Department of Agriculture, hit upon a plan
of cultivating them in a way by which they could be pre-
served for many months, and he also gave them a much
greater power. This nitrogen-fixing power was so devel-
oped that seeds soaked in the solution, it is claimed,
sprouted and produced plants in sand that possessed no
nitrates. He then found that these bacteria when grown
upon nitrogen-free media will retain a high activity for a
long time, if carefully dried out and then revived in a

NITRO-CULTURE I99

liquid medium. He also devised a plan by which they
could be mailed to any part of the world and arrive in
perfect condition.

Most experiment station men have given to Dr. Moore
great credit for his discoveries and have tried, with rather
marked success, his method of nitro-culture ; on the
other hand a few have been opposed to the method from
the beginning and are still opposed. It would seem that
the tests made prove that nitro-culture does introduce
bacteria when directions are followed.

Of course if a farmer's soil has the alfalfa bacteria, it
is not necessary to use any system of inoculation. If
Sweet clover or Bur clover is growing in the vicinity, or
if alfalfa is thriftily growing near without the aid of
inoculation, it is hardly necessary to make there further
efforts for the introduction of bacteria.

SUGGESTIONS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICUL-
TURE

In a preceding chapter the opinion was expressed that
in most states, and in most localities in those states, inocu-
lation was unnecessary because bacteria were already pres-
ent; yet it is true that these bacteria are present, if at all,
in varying quantity. If comparatively few are present, any
method of inoculation that will introduce more into the
soil, to hasten the growth of the tubercles and promote
the gathering of nitrogen, will be helpful. The fact is,
we know as yet comparatively little of all there is to be
learned about this wonderful principle. It is altogether
probable that the use of nitro-culture is as practicable and
as free from objections as the use of inoculated soil, espe-

200 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

daily from distant and unknown fields. In one of its bul-
letins the United States Department of Agriculture has
summarized its advice as to inoculation as follows:

When Inoculation is Necessary. — Inoculation is nec-
essary—

1. On a soil low in organic matter that has not pre-
viously borne leguminous crops.

2. If the legumes previously grown on the same land
were devoid of nodules, of ''nitrogen knots," thus show-
ing the need of the nodule-forming bacteria.

3. When the legume to be sown belongs to a species
not closely related to one previously grown on the same
soil. For instance, soil in which Red clover forms nod-
ules will often fail to produce nodules on alfalfa when
sown with the latter crop for the first time.

When Inoculation May Prove Advantageous. — Inocu-
lation may prove advantageous —

1. When the soil produces a sickly growth of legumes,
even though their roots show some nodules.

If the cultures introduced are of the highest virility,
their use will often result in a more vigorous growth.

2. When a leguminous crop already sown has made a
stand, but shows signs of failing, owing to the absence of
root nodules.

The use of the culture liquid as a spray or by mixture
with soil and top-dressing may save the stand if other
conditions are favorable.

When Inoculation is Unnecessary. — On the other hand,
inoculation is unnecessary and offers little prospect of
gain—

NITROCULTURE 201

1. When the leguminous crops that are usually grown
are producing up to the average, and the roots show nod-
ules in normal abundance.

Cultures of nitrogen-fixing bacteria are not to be
regarded in the light of fertilizers, or as capable of
increasing the yield under average conditions. They do
not contain nitrogen itself, but bacteria, which make it
possible for the legumes to secure nitrogen from the air
(through the formation of root nodules). Where the
soil is already adequately supplied with these bacteria, it
will not usually pay to practice artificial inoculation.

2. When the soil is already rich in nitrogen.

It is neither necessary nor profitable to inoculate a soil
rich in nitrogen when sowing legumes. Not only does
the available nitrogen in the soil render the formation of
nodules less necessary, but the nitrogenous materials in
the soil largely prevent the bacteria from forming nodules.

Any increased virility in nitrogen-fixing power pos-
sessed by any of the types of bacteria yet distributed, may
be rapidly lost in a soil containing an abundance of nitro-
gen, because the bacteria are in a medium in which there
is no demand for activity in securing atmospheric
nitrogen.

When Failure is to be Expected — Inoculation will fail
where other conditions (aside from the need of bacteria)
are not taken into account, among which are the fol-
lowing—

I. In soil that is acid and in need of lime.

Liming to correct acidity is as important for the proper
acidity of the bacteria as for the growth of the plants.

202 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

2. In soil that is deficient in fertilizers, such as potash,
phosphoric acid or lime.

The activity of the bacteria in securing nitrogen from
the air and rendering it available to the legumes does not
do away v^ith the need for such fertilizing elements as
potash and phosphorus.

3. It must also be remembered that inoculation does
not ''act like magic" ; it v^ill not overcome results due to
bad seed, improper preparation and cultivation of the
ground, and decidedly adverse conditions of weather and
climate.

In the use of the cultures, also, failure is almost certain
where the directions are not carefully studied and intel-
ligently followed.

SWEET CLOVER SOIL USED TO INOCULATE ALFALFA
FIELDS

The discovery in Illinois that inoculation of the soil for
alfalfa was necessary in certain places and not in others
suggested the theory that bacteria living on some other,
probably native, plant were identical with the alfalfa bac-
teria. Investigations led to satisfactory evidence that this
was the case and that the native plant was the ordinary
Sweet clover {Melilotus alba). The illustration facing
page 231 shows the results of a series of pot culture ex-
periments made at the University of Illinois and reported
in Bulletin No. 94 by Prof. Cyril G. Hopkins. The four
photographs were made five, six, seven and eight weeks,
respectively, from the time of planting. Alfalfa seed
were planted in each of the five pots, in carefully prepared
soil practically free of combined nitrogen, and at the same
time four of the five pots were inoculated as follows :

N I TRO- CULTURE 203

Pot No. I. — Not inoculated.

Pot No. 2. — Inoculated with bacteria obtained from
infected alfalfa soil.

Pot No. 3. — Inoculated with bacteria obtained from
alfalfa root tubercles.

Pot No. 4. — Inoculated with bacteria obtained from
infected Sweet clover soil.

Pot No. 5. — Inoculated with bacteria obtained from
Sweet clover root tubercles.

The results indicate that the same effect is produced
upon the growth of the alfalfa by the nitrogen-gathering
bacteria obtained from Sweet clover as by those from the
older alfalfa, and seem to prove that infected Sweet
clover soil can be used for the inoculation of alfalfa fields.
Investigations have shown that lOO pounds of thoroughly
infected soil to the acre is sufficient to produce a satisfac-
tory inoculation within one year from the time it is
applied.

CHAPTER XXIL

Alfalfa as a Commercial Factor

EFFECT ON LAND VALUES

Only a few years ago alfalfa hay was not named in the
market reports. Now it is conspicuous in the lists of
hays. Then there were thousands of sandy acres in Kan-
sas and Nebraska being held at from $2 to $5 per acre
that now, seeded to alfalfa, are selling at from $30 to $75
per acre. Then, cultivated farms in those districts could
be rented for $1 per acre; now, seeded one-half to alfalfa,
they rent for $3 to $5 and more per acre. In the South
cotton lands rent for $5, and alfalfa lands at $15 per acre.
Land in the Yellowstone valley was worth, wild, $1.50
per acre; now, under irrigation and seeded half to alfalfa
and half to wheat it commands $100 per acre. A few
years ago labor commanded in those districts that now
raise alfalfa about $1 a day; since then, during alfalfa
harvest, hundreds of men have been imported there and
paid $2 or $2.50 per day. Then farmers were poor and
trade was dull ; now, a farmer who owns eighty acres well
set in alfalfa, harvests about 300 tons of hay worth from
$5 to $12 per ton and has the proceeds available for added
comforts, improvements and luxuries.

A few years ago it was thought that America was
approaching a crisis in the matter of beef and pork and

ALFALFA AS A COMMERCIAL FACTOR 205

mutton production because of the rapid diminishing of
the free pubhc ranges by the forest reserves, irrigation
projects, and the Hke. It was insisted that the farmers
could not nearly sustain the meat supply. Possibly they
cannot, but alfalfa is doing wonders in helping to solve
the problem of cheap meat production. Millions of sheep
and thousands of cattle are being fattened annually on the
alfalfa of California, Montana, Colorado, Kansas and
Nebraska, and in some portions where a few years ago
the sandy prairies gave but a scant subsistence to scrawny
range cattle.

ENHANCES DAIRY INTERESTS

In parts of the East since the introduction of alfalfa,
the number of dairy cows in many townships has trebled
and the dairy product more than quadrupled. When two
acres of alfalfa will carry ten dairy cows through a sum-
mer, the day and opportunity of the small dairyman are
certainly at hand. When, as is the case, alfalfa increases
the rental and selling value and consequently the taxable
value of land ; when it increases the demand for and price
of labor; when it increases the fertility of the land for
other crops that may follow; when it brings enlarged
profits to the entire stock-raising and stock-fattening
interests, and puts more money in circulation, it is inevit-
ably to be considered a commercial factor.

CHAPTER XXIII.

The Enemies of Alfalfa

The most notable enemies of alfalfa are weeds, insects,
parasites, and animals. More failures to raise alfalfa are
caused by weeds than by all other enemies combined.
The cause of weeds in a field is usually poor farming.
Clipping alfalfa early in May will kill many weeds. If
the weeds grow up, clip again and do the same every
time they threaten to become rampant. If they are kept
from seeding, and do not in a large measure crowd out
the alfalfa, good crops may be had from it the second
season. If sowed in the fall, disking early in April may
kill most of the weeds. It is folly to sow alfalfa on a foul
field, as it is far less expensive to kill out the weeds
beforehand. Disking and clipping will do much to
destroy them, but if they secure a strong foothold the
best thing to do is to plow up the field, plant it in corn,
give it clean cultivation, and sow alfalfa again when the
weeds have been exterminated.

DODDER

Dodder is an annoying enemy. It is a parasite, belong-
ing to the morning-glory family, growing from its own
small seed but attaching itself very soon to the alfalfa
stalk. It then separates itself from its own root and
thereafter lives on the juices of the alfalfa until it ripens

Peculiar Nodules in Groups on Small Rootlets

and distant from the large alfalfa roots. From Michigan Experiment Station
Bulletin No. 225

Alfalfa Roots Showing Normal Nodules

small and near the large roots. From Michigan Experiment Station
Bulletin No. 225

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 20/

its seeds or has killed the alfalfa. The wisest and safest
thing- to do is to sow only seed so thoroughly cleaned that
there will be no dodder with it. If, later, it is found that
any dodder seed escaped the cleaning operations and is
growing, the grower should go through the field with a
knife or sickle and a large basket or sack and cut out and
burn every dodder vine and every plant to which dodder
is attached. If so unfortunate as to have sown seed with
a considerable mixture of dodder, clip the alfalfa early
in May, let the clippings dry for two or three days or
longer, and then burn on the field, watching carefully to
have the fire touch every part. It will facilitate a com-
plete burning to sprinkle parts not burning readily, with
kerosene. If there is a poor stand of alfalfa, largely
infested with dodder, safety lies in plowing it up and cul-
tivating the field in corn or potatotes for two or three
years.

From an excellent article on the dodder that infests
alfalfa (Cusciita epithymum) by Mr. F. E. Dawley, a
New York authority on alfalfa, and printed with illus-
trations in the Country Gentleman, the excerpts here fol-
lowing are taken :

*'The only sure method of keeping alfalfa fields free
from dodder is through exercising greater caution in the
purchase of seed. There is no reason why thoroughly
recleaned alfalfa seed should have any dodder seed in it,
as reference to the illustrations will show. The relative
sizes and forms of the seeds of alfalfa and dodder are
shown herewith. It will be seen that there is a marked
difference in both the sizes and the shapes of the seeds.
The alfalfa seed is shaped like a little kidney bean, and

208 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

varies in color from light yellowish-green to a richgolden-
yellow, and in some instances, because of weathering, or
sweating in the cocky or perhaps standing too long, it
shows a reddish-brown color. The dodder seed is darker
in color than the alfalfa, all of that which I have suc-
ceeded in gathering from the plants being a rich golden-
brown. The accompanying illustrations show the form of
the dodder and alfalfa seed respectively.

"The seeds, being sown, germinate in the soil, throw-
ing up a slender, thread-like stem somewhat resembling
a corn silk, which retains its connection with the ground
until it comes in contact with the stem of the alfalfa plant.
It twines around this tightly, sending its feeding suckers
through the outside bark, and as soon as it is firmly
attached to the host plant, the ground connection is sev-
ered and it is sustained by the plant juices which are taken
in by the suckers. It continues to grow and spread, twin-
ing around other stalks and increasing very rapidly until
a colony is established. Continuing to grow, it climbs
toward the upper portion of the plants, feeding on their
juices and sapping their vitality, but never goes to the
extreme top, seeming to prefer the dampness and dark-
ness of the matted alfalfa rather than sunlight. The
plants first attacked begin to die, and the dodder, spread-
ing out in all directions, forms a circle or ring.

**The rapidity with which the pest spreads makes it a
serious menace to the alfalfa grower. Comparatively
little work has been done by scientific men in studying
the dodders and methods of eradication, and the fact that
the little rootlets or suckers (haustoria) become so firmly
affixed to the host plant that it must be destroyed together

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 209

with the parasite, has made the work hard and the results
obtained unsatisfactory. There are a number of methods
by which dodder may be spread through a field. As soon
as it becomes thoroughly established on a host plant, the
many little branches, waving about like the shoot pro-
duced from the seed, attach themselves to other plants,
and thus the colony is increased in size. In legumes, the
host plant first attacked soon dies, but before this occurs,
the parasite has become firmly established on adjoining
plants and is reaching out and completing the colony.
As soon as a host dies, the dodder also perishes, but before
this happens it is very likely to have blossomed and seeded.
*'In the operations of mowing, tedding, raking and
drawing the alfalfa hay, these little colonies are spread
about the fields by the machines and the workmen, and
on the horses' feet. The sale of infested hay is a prolific
means of dissemination. Hunters and pleasure seekers,
walking through the fields, notice the peculiar corn-silk-
like growths and often, by picking up particles of it which
are soon cast away, establish new colonies. The flower
is very peculiar and attracts the attention of people pass-
ing, who are apt to pick them together with some of the
maturing seed, and scatter these over the fields. In a
pastured field, the animals spread the seed to some extent
while moving from place to place in feeding. The most
serious menace, however, is from the purchase of impure
seed; farmers should always be absolutely certain that
the alfalfa seed which they are buying is thoroughly
recleaned and that no small weed seed is to be found in It.
One should never sow clover or alfalfa from a field or
even from a locality in which dodder is known to exist.

2IO THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

It is probable that the seeds thoroughly ripened will
retain their germinating powers for some years. The
purchase of hay from dodder infested fields, or the pur-
chase of manure from barns where infested hay has been
fed, are sure sources of contamination.

^'Where a newly seeded alfalfa field shows evidence of
quite general dodder infection, it is useless to attempt to
eradicate it, and the field should be plowed up and planted
with some hoed crop for a period of years. Old fields
that have been thoroughly infested will probably be more
economically treated in this manner than in any other.
In newly sown fields, one of the most effective methods
is probably hoeing over the spots where the dodder
appears, going over them once in two weeks and allowing
nothing to grow on them until the dodder seed is ger-
minated. A modification of this method has been used
successfully by spading in fields where the colonies of
dodder were seen, raking out all the tops, roots and
branches, adding a little straw or hay and burning the
mass, and then keeping the spot thoroughly hoed for a
season. For fields where the colonies are small and scat-
tered, this method of hoeing and shallow cultivation is
probably the most practicable, as it helps to secure the
early germination of any seeds that were left in the
ground, and also kills them as soon as they are germi-
nated. If the seed has developed, one must be careful not
to spade it in too deep, as it may retain its vitality for
some years if left covered in the moist soil.

''Burning has been recommended by some, raking the
dodder vines and what is left of the alfalfa to the center
of the colonies, putting brush or straw with it, together

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 211

with some fine, light wood or chips and sprinkHng with
kerosene, so that the alfalfa plants will be burned close
to the ground. This is necessary from the fact that the
little coils of dodder close to the crown of the plants will
retain their vitality and grow after a very severe burn-
ing, providing the alfalfa which is above the ground is
not killed also. The most difficult problem to be con-
fronted in killing out dodder where it has become estab-
lished, arises from the fact that if these little coils which
wind themselves closely around the plant are not killed
or removed, the dodder will spread from these and make
a new growth. Many experiments have been made with
chemicals, but none of them have proved wholly success-
ful, from the fact that these little rings were not
destroyed. All the rest of the plant was killed and the
production of flowers and seed prevented; but as these
little rings were not killed, the dodder began growing
again and continued to grow throughout the season."

LEAF SPOT

Leaf spot is a very peculiar disease and, fortunately,
not common in this country. It has been known in
France since 1832. In 1891 it was destructive in Iowa
alfalfa, the loss in the neighborhood of the experiment
station being estimated at 50 per cent. In reference to
this infliction the Iowa station, among other information,
printed the following :

"Any time after the plant has attained a growth of
four to six inches from the seed, but most commonly
after the first year's growth, there appears upon the upper
side of the leaves small, irregular brownish spots, which

212 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

enlarge to about one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter and
extend through the leaf to the under side, turning all
parts brown. When many spots occur on the same
leaf the whole leaf soon turns yellow and falls off. This
falling of the leaves and the natural loss in vigor, due to
the diseased condition before the falling, constitute its
great damage. Frequent cutting of the crop materially
prevents the disease."

In eastern states farmers report that there are frequent
patches in their fields where the leaves turn red and the
plant dies. The probable explanation of this trouble is
*'wet feet," which alfalfa will not abide. Don't expect to
get a crop of alfalfa from a field in v/hich water is near
the surface. Drain it or use another field.

ROOT ROT

A disease peculiar to portions of the southern states is
called ''root rot," and similar to the root rot found in
cotton fields. The alfalfa dies in spots, these spots widen-
ing in circular form. This is a fungus that spreads only
in summer. The only means of eradicatmg so far
(reported by the Texas station) is the application of com-
mon salt and kerosene. It has not proven a serious
annoyance.

GOPHERS AND PRAIRIE DOGS

Gophers and prairie dogs are great pests in some parts
of the Middle West, and about the only successful means
of combating them is poison. The state of Kansas has,
probably more than any other, made a systematic effort
to destroy its gophers and prairie dogs, by liberal appro-

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA SIJ

priations and a field agent to supervise the work to be
carried out under provisions of law by local officials.

The injury done by the gophers consists chiefly in
throwing up mounds of soil taken from the burrows and
these greatly interfere with operating the mowing
machine in harvesting. In the alfalfa fields there is also
a noticeable thinning out of the plants, by reason of the
cutting off of the roots. These root cuttings are stored
in the burrows in considerable piles, and are used in cold
weather by the gophers for food. It is claimed by some
alfalfa growers that this process of thinning out the plants
is a benefit rather than an injury to the field, but, says
Prof. D. E. Lantz, the official formerly in charge of the
Kansas work, 'T have known fields where this thinning
has continued until the crop did not half cover the ground
at cutting time, and the fields were plowed up for the
planting of other crops. The loss from gopher depreda-
tions to the alfalfa growers of Kansas during 1901 was
probably fully one-tenth of the entire product, and had a
money value of at least $500,000."

According to Professor Lantz, carbon bisulphide and
other poisonous gases have frequently been recommended
for the destruction of the pocket-gopher, but the great
length of the burrowsand their irregularities in depth pre-
vent the gases from flowing into every part, and the ani-
mals often escape. Trapping, if properly done, is a sure
method of killing the gopher ; but it is attended with con-
siderable labor and is very slow. An excellent trap for
general use is the No. O ordinary steel trap. Sink it in
loose soil to the level of the runv/ay, nearly conceal it by
sprinkling fine earth over it, and leave the hole open.

214 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Gophers are easily poisoned. They are fond of pota-
toes, sweet potatoes, apples, raisins and prunes. The
presence of strychnine, arsenic or other poisons does not
seem to deter them from eating the food ; but if the poison
is sweetened they seem to eat it more readily. In sum-
mer it may be desirable to sweeten the poison, but in the
fall and early spring it does not seem worth while. The
poisoned food being introduced to the burrows below the
surface, there is no danger of poisoning stock. It might
be well, however, not to let swine run in the fields for a
time after the poison has been put out.

The following method of introducing poison is rec-
ommended : Cut the potatoes or other food into pieces
not more than three-fourths of an inch in diameter. Cut
a slit in each piece and with a point of the knife blade
insert a little sulphate of strychnine ; as much as half the
bulk of a grain of wheat. Having prepared the bait in
sufficient quantity, go to the field armed with a round,
sharp-pointed implement an inch or an inch and a half in
diameter and of sufficient length. The tool here illus-
trated was made by a blacksmith.

It is a spade handle shod with an iron point. A bar
is attached about fifteen inches from the point to enable
the operator to use his foot in pressing it into the soil.
With this tool it is only necessary to find the runway of
the gopher. The handle is sufficiently thick to make a
hole large enough to permit one to drop the poisoned
potato directly into the burrow. The operator then passes

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 215

on to another place, leaving the hole open. No digging
with a spade or other hard labor is necessary. An
experienced person can distribute poison to many acres
of alfalfa in a day; and if proper care is taken to rightly
distribute the bait, it will not be necessary to go over the
ground a second time. Some experience is required to
find the burrows quickly. It is best to insert the food as
near as possible to the freshest mounds of earth. Two
or three pieces of potato at that place are worth many
scattered in other parts of the runway. The operator
should avoid the larger mounds and those that are not
freshly made.

For destroying prairie dogs, Professor Lantz says that
out of thousands of suggestions nothing has been found
more effective than strychnine poison and carbon bisul-
phide. Following are directions for preparing and using
the strychnine :

"Dissolve one and a half ounces of strychnine sulphate
in a quart of hot water. Add a quart of syrup — molasses,
sorghum, or thick sugar and water — and a teaspoonful
of oil of anise. Thoroughly heat and mix the liquid.
While hot pour it over a bushel of clean wheat and mix
completely. Then stir in two or more pounds of fine
corn meal. The quantity of corn meal needed will
depend upon the amount of extra moisture present.
There should be enough to wet every grain of the wheat
and no more. Care should be taken that there is no
leakage from the vessel in which the wheat is mixed.
Let the poisoned grain stand over night, and distribute
it in the early morning of a bright day. Use a table-
spoonful of the wheat to each hole occupied by prairie

2l6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

dogs, putting it near the mouth of the burrow in two or
three Httle bunches. Do not put out the poison in cold
or stormy weather. It will keep for a considerable time,
and is much more effective after a cold period, as the
animals are then hungry and eat the grain readily. A
bushel of wheat should poison looo to 1200 holes. An
excellent substitute for the oil of anise in this formula
can be made by soaking two ounces of green coffee ber-
ries in the whites of three eggs. Let this stand for about
twelve hours, and use the liquid instead of anise oil."

A tablespoon ful of carbon bisulphide, upon some such
absorbent material as cotton, dry horse manure, or a piece
of corn-cob, and rolled into the burrows, is effective. It
is best immediately to cover the hole with a sod and stamp
down firmly.

GRASSHOPPERS

Grasshoppers are a source of no little loss to alfalfa
growers in some parts of the West. They usually do
their greatest damage to the season's second crop, the
young not being very destructive to the first. The best
remedy, or rather prevention, is deep disking in April and
then harrowing to destroy the eggs.

Where the pests attack or are about to attack a field
of alfalfa. Prof. L. Bruner, of the Nebraska station rec-
ommends the use of a ''hopper dozer," which is "simply a
long, shallow pan of stove-pipe iron or galvanized iron
mounted on runners and backed by a light frame covered
with cloth. The pan is about four inches deep, from
eighteen inches to two feet wide, and from ten to sixteen
feet long. It is partly filled with water and a little kero-
sene. A horse drags the machine across the field over

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 21/

the Stubble of the first crop and the half -grown hoppers
jump into the pan where the oil coats them over and
kills every one that it touches. The hopper dozer w^orks
best on level land. On sloping ground the oil and water
run to one end and slop over. To prevent this the pan is
usually divided into sections by a number of partitions.
The runners should stick out in front of the pan about
a foot and one-half, and a piece of chain or heavy rope
should be stretched loosely between them to drag ahead
of the machine and make the hoppers jump. On level
fields there are no great difficulties in the use of the
hopper dozer. Careless driving may spill oil on some
alfalfa and kill it. If these machines are to be really
effective, they must be used before the grasshoppers get
their wings. The first crop of alfalfa should be cut as
early as possible, and the hopper dozers should follow
the rakes as closely as may be. On the whole, they should
be used only where plowing and harrowing have not been
done or have failed to keep the grasshoppers in check."

Of the use of this implement or machine Prof. S. J.
Hunter has this to say :

*'The height of the runners depends upon the height
of crop to be protected. It is important that there be no
timbers in front of the pan, so that its front line may
come in contact with the grain passed over. The insects
then fall directly into the fluid. When ready for use
place two buckets of water and one-half gallon of coal-
oil in a pan, and then drive back and forth across the
end of the field where the grasshoppers are entering until
you have filled the pans; remove the insects, replenish
with oil and water, and continue until the field is rid of
the pest

2l8 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

*'Many grasshoppers will be seen strike the sheet-
iron back, drop into the pans and immediately jump out
again. Those farmers who observed the experiments
were at first of the opinion that the locusts that jumped
out had jumped away 'to live another day/ The writer
asked those interested to watch the insects and note the
actions of grasshoppers that had jumped out. In every
case the report was that the insects became sick and
soon died. In fact, persons going over fields where
a day or so before the hopper dozer had been at work,
were impressed with the number of dead grass-
hoppers on the ground. An examination showed the
presence of coal-oil upon the body. This kerosene and
water is an external irritant, and my observations have
been that the mixture is more effective than the oil alone.

"The use of the machine may be best shown by
examples. In Ford county, Kansas, a large tract of
alfalfa was cut, and the locusts at once began moving into
a large field of Kafir corn which had been sown broad-
cast. The hopper dozer was drawn back and forth across
the end of the corn field nearest the alfalfa land until a
portion of the field about twenty rods deep had been gone
over. Here it was apparent that there were very few
grasshoppers; or, in other words, the advance line of
the locusts' march only extended twenty rods into the
field. Two days later the same area of ground was cov-
ered, but not as many insects were taken. Grasshoppers
no longer entered this corn and the hopper dozer was no
longer used at this point.

*Tt has been my experience with this machine that
after it has passed over vegetation it does not injure the

THE ENEMIES OF ALFALFA 219

plants, but in some way renders the vegetation distasteful
to the grasshoppers, so that they turn their course and
seek food elsewhere. I have observed that these native
grasshoppers enter a field from one corner or side, and
that they are not as a rule scattered over the whole field,
but occur in great numbers in patches. This being the
case, it is evident that with very little labor with this
machine the products of a field can be given full oppor-
tunity to mature."

ARMY WORMS

Tn Nebraska the fall army worm has caused consider-
able damage. It is distinct from the true army worm, hav-
ing small hairs growing out from small black spots; it
has a whitish ''Y" shaped mark upon the head. The
parent of the worms is a moth of a yellowish, ash-gray
color. The female moth deposits her eggs in clusters
upon the leaves and stems. With the approach of cold
weather the worms pass into the ground and enter the
chrysalis stage about one or two inches below the surface.
When very numerous the only effective treatment is to
disk thoroughly in the spring.

BIXD WEED

Bindweed, belonging to the morning-glory family, is
one of the meanest weeds that annoy alfalfa raisers. It
spreads from the root, and is more than liable to smother
out alfalfa or any other crop which tries to occupy its
ground. If infested fields could be grazed closely with
hogs or sheep, they might keep the bindweed down and
finally eradicate it. If this cannot be done, the only rem-
edy is to plow and use the land for some other crop.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Difficulties and Discouragements

Notwithstanding the fact that alfalfa is now grown
successfully in all parts of the United States, in almost
all kinds of soils and under many dissimilar conditions of
climate, there are grouped here as a summary from pre-
ceding chapters the several difficulties and discourage-
ments that may confront the one who would grow it.

I. Securing a Good Stand. Theoretically, the farmer
should secure a good stand every year with every crop,
but he does not. He obtains, however, poor stands of
wheat and corn and potatoes oftener than a poor stand
of alfalfa. Why does he fail with alfalfa? The follow-
ing, at least in part, suggests why :

a He neglects to prepare sufficiently in advance. He
should select his alfalfa field one or two years before he
intends sowing. H he raises wheat, he should sow a little
alfalfa seed with wheat, one or even two years before
ready for alfalfa. This will leave a few roots and the
proper bacteria will have been introduced into the soil.
For two years there sliould be a vigorous fight against
weeds, the fewest possible being permitted to ripen seed.

h He neglects to prepare properly for the preceding
crop, and sometimes plants the wrong crop, although
sorghum and Kafir corn are about the only very objec-
tionable planting to precede alfalfa. These have usually

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DIFFICULTIES AND DISCOURAGEMENTS 221

taken too much of the land's moisture, especially if the
season has been somewhat dry, to permit a prosperous
beginning of the plants from fall sown seed. Millet, oats
or cowpeas are the best crops to precede, i. e. for the first
trial. The plowing for this preceding crop should be
deep. In clay land a subsoil plow (the kind which loosens
but does not throw the subsoil to the surface) should
follow. It is extremely important that a dressing of
stable manure be plowed under for this preceding crop.
The seed bed should be carefully prepared, and under
favorable conditions. Working the ground when too wet
would make it impossible to secure a proper seed bed
later when preparing for alfalfa.

c He neglects to prepare the alfalfa seed bed prop-
erly. He should begin disking and harrowing as soon as
the preparatory crop is off the ground, and continue
this at intervals of ten or fifteen days until time for sow-
ing, when the soil should be as fine as for an onion bed.

d He uses poor seed ; seed that is infertile, or adul-
terated with weed seeds — undesirable and unreliable in
every way.

2. Dying out the second year, which in most instances
is due to one of two causes, viz. : neglect to plow under
stable manure for the preceding crop, or pasturing alfalfa
in its first year. Not an animal should be turned on an
alfalfa field for pasture until the second or, preferably,
the third year. Another cause is disturbance of the soil
and plants by severe freezing. This may often be pre-
vented in a degree by a light top-dressing of manure in
December.

222 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

3. Failure through harvesting and stacking.

4. Injury from insects or disease.

These are practically all the things that need occasion
serious vexation. Of course alfalfa calls for more work
in harvesting than corn, or clover, or timothy; but one
acre of prosperous alfalfa is worth two or three of corn,
or clover or timothy, even for market, while for feeding
purposes the difference is even greater. The "poor"
farmer, the lazy farmer, the ''corner grocery" farmer
should not sow alfalfa.

CHAPTER XXV.

Miscellaneous

AliFAIiFA IN THE ORCHARD

Probably nine-tenths of those who have written on this
subject have condemned the practice of sowing alfalfa
in the orchard. They have said that the alfalfa demanded
so much moisture that the trees would be dwarfed if not
destroyed. In going through an immense amount of
material in the preparation of this book only two in-
stances have been found of men who claim that the
alfalfa is a benefit to orchards. One of these was from
Texas and the newspaper quoting him did not give his
name. He was reported to have used his orchard for
hog pasture, keeping on five acres from ten to fifteen
sows with their pigs from early April to September. He
claimed that the alfalfa instead of robbing the orchard
of moisture actually contributed to the surface moisture
and benefited the trees.

Prof. F. L. Watrous, of the Colorado station, is an
earnest advocate of the use of alfalfa in the orchard and
from an article of his this is quoted :

"Whatever may have been believed or imagined as to
the uncongeniality of trees and alfalfa the theory is des-
tined to an early downfall. The evidence is at hand now

224 THE BOOK OF ALFALPA

to show that not only is alfalfa not a detriment when
grown among fruit trees, but in many ways it is a posi-
tive benefit, lending itself and its properties to the advan-
tage of the trees.

*'On land where moisture can be found at from six to
ten feet from the surface, the congeniality of the alfalfa
plant and the apple tree becomes apparent. Both need
plenty of water the first year, a little less the sec-
ond, and very little or none thereafter.

^'After trees become old enough to bear and need all
the land between them, and that fertilized and renovated,
alfalfa may be used as a food gatherer and distributer.
It pushes down into the lower strata, bringing up min-
eral elements, captures nitrogen from the air through its
root processes, and brings all together near the surface,
thus giving to the trees the food they need to fill up and
mature fruit. Nor is this all. The alfalfa falling on the
ground makes a soft cover upon which windfalls may
drop with little bruising; it so occupies the soil as to
allow no foul growth to creep in ; it does away with the
work of weeding or cultivating, and keeps the surface
cool and porous, furnishing excellent pasture for hogs
if the trees are protected. It would be possible, of course,
in this system of co-operation between fruit trees and
alfalfa to secure a crop of hay or seed during the off
years for fruit, but whether this would prove profitable
may be questioned. Orchards growing under the condi-
tions described have produced magnificent crops of fruit
which, for size, quality and coloring, is seldom equaled."

MISCELLANEOUS 225

S03iE AliFAIiFA "MUSTS" AND "DON'TS"

A Knox county, Ohio, man, in expressing himself as
to some of the requisites for success with alfalfa, as
observed from his viewpoint has this to say:

''I have known about alfalfa from boyhood; been
familiar with it for thirty years, and have grown it suc-
cessfully on many soils, from a stiff clay, upwards. The
failures which I have seen have been accounted for by
the non-performance of some of the essentials. There
are certain ^musts', not 'shoulds,' to be observed to secure
success. Here they are from my experience:

'Tirst of all the seed must be pure, of high germinat-
ing power, and of the highest possible vitality. If I
doubted my own proficiency in these determinations, I
would consult the nearest experiment station. I have
had occasion to consult experiment stations, from New
Jersey to Wisconsin, on various subjects, and in every
instance have met with prompt and valuable — and sym-
pathetic— assistance.

"The soil must have lime; either as one of its natural
constituents, or lime must be added. If the soil is defi-
cient, then the lime must be incorporated with the soil
some months before seeding.

"The land must have efficient drainage, either natural,
or, as in the case of clay and heavy clay loams, artificial.

"The land must be fertile to a depth of at least nine
inches. Beyond that depth the taproot in its search for
water will take care of itself."

Another writer, impressed by practices he regards as
reprehensible, enumerates them as follows :

226 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

"Don't SOW any nurse crop.

"Don't sow on freshly plowed land, no matter how care-
fully prepared.

"Don't let weeds or grass grow over six inches high with-
out clipping.

"Don't clip or mow when wet with rain or dew.

"Don't let alfalfa stand ; if turning yellow, cut it.

"Don't sow old seed.

"Don't sow less than twenty pounds per acre, one-half
each way.

"Don't sow twenty-five acres at first ; sow five.

"Don't pasture it.

"Don't put any of the rotten manure anywhere but on
your alfalfa plot.

"Don't depend upon 'culture cakes' or soil from some
distant field.

"Don't let any water stand on it.

"Don't let it go if a thin stand, but disk in more seed;
don't be afraid you will kill it.

"Don't replow the land, disk it.

"Don't wait for it to stool ; it never does.

"Don't try to cut for hay until the alfalfa takes the field.

"Don't sow on any land not well underdrained.

"Don't leave your land rough ; use a roller or a plank float
to level and smooth it.

"Don't give up."

MISCELLANEOUS 227

AliFILERILLA OH "ALFILARIA"

(Er odium citcutarium. )

On account of the similarity of its name to that of
alfalfa and the possibility of the two plants being con-
fused in the minds of those not acquainted with them, it
is proper to make mention here of the plant referred to
in the caption above. It is not generally known nor
widely distributed, and has as yet its principal habitat in
semi-arid parts of the southwestern United States. The
Century Dictionary calls it Pin-clover or Pin-grass, and
classifies it with the Geranium family. Webster's Dic-
tionary speaks of it as a weed in California. It is an
annual and seeds profusely; a few seeds scattered over
quite a large area result in a thorough seeding the sec-
ond year. A stockman in Arizona writes that it will
grow on any kind of soil except alkali ; that it was intro-
auced from Australia by sheep carrying it in their wool.
It is a southern plant and should not be seeded largely
north of the northern line of Oklahoma until tested by
the experiment stations. It should not be confused with
alfalfa, as it is entirely dissimilar and not related.

In discussing this plant an Arizona editor writes the
following :

''It is by no means a new or experimental crop, for it
was the main reliance of Arizona stockmen during ten
years of drouth. We suppose that the experiment sta-
tions in the West have given it little attention because
it is as well known as alfalfa here, and millions of acres
are covered with it in various portions of the Territory.

228 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

*'We know from many years experience that alfilaria
will thrive and keep stock in good condition where no
grass roots would live through one of the dry seasons.
It is peculiarly adapted to the poorer soils in western
Kansas, Nebraska, the Texas Panhandle, New Mexico,
and portions of the northern section of Mexico.

*'Its merits are that it will grow in seasons so dry that
other forage fails and that it will keep cattle in better
health and condition as to flesh and growth than any-
thing else we can grow in Arizona, not excepting alfalfa.
In the spring cattle and horses will go miles to find it and
it is better than 'condition powders' to put them in con-
dition for summer growth.

"What it will do on other classes of soil, under excess
of moisture, is a matter of experiment; but where it is
needed most — as above outlined, there is nothing that
has ever been tested under these adverse conditions which
can compare with alfilaria. This will be certified to by
every ranchman and cattleman in this section of Arizona."

MEASURING HAY IN THE STACK

Some method of arriving at the quantity in a stack,
rick, or mow without weighing it, is, at one time and
another, found desirable by everyone who has to do with
loose hay. There can be no absolute rule laid dov/n for
this because of the varying compactness the hay attains
under differing conditions of coarseness or fineness,
moisture, length of time stacked or stored and the weight
which has rested upon it.

For prairie hay stacked not less than thirty days a
cube seven feet square (343 cubic feet) is not uncom-

MISCELLANEOUS 229

monly bought or sold as a ton; yet seven-and-a-half feet
square, or 422 cubic feet, are often made the basis of
estimating. The author is advised that in the alfalfa
growing districts of the Yellowstone valley it is the
general custom to accept as a ton 422 cubic feet of alfalfa
hay if it has settled thirty days or more. Also that hay-
men find there is a noticeable variation between the dif-
ferent cuttings. The first cutting will fall short of actual
weight more than the second, while the third cutting will
hold up in weight, and sometimes overrun. Prof. E.
A. Burnett, of the Nebraska experiment station, thinks
an eight-foot cube, or 512 cubic feet, a fair figure.

Professor Ten Eyck says :

**The rules for measuring hay in the stack will vary
according to the length of time the hay has been stacked
and the kind and quality of the hay, and also according
to the character of the stack. With alfalfa or prairie
hay which has been stacked for thirty days it is usual to
compute an eight-foot cube or 512 cubic feet as a ton.
When the hay has been stacked five or six months, usually
a seven-and-a-half -foot cube or 422 cubic feet is calcu-
lated for a ton. In old stacks which have been stacked a
year or more a seven-foot cube or 343 cubic feet is al-
lowed for a ton.

''There are different methods of measuring a stack,
depending upon its shape and also its size. For a long
stack or rick the usual method is to throw a line over
the stack measuring the distance (in two or three places,
and use the average) from the bottom on one side to the
bottom on the other; add to this the average width of
the stack, divide this sum by four (which equals one side

230 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

of the square) and multiply the quotient by itself and
this product by the length of the stack; this will give the
number of cubic feet in the stack, which may be divided
by 512, 422, or 343 in order to find the number of tons.
For small, low ricks the rule is to subtract the width
from the *over,' divide by 2, multiply by the width and
multiply the product by the length, dividing the result
by the number of cubic feet in a ton.

"There is no established rule for measuring round
stacks, but this one will approximate the contents of one
of the ordinary conical form: Find the circumference at
or above the base or 'bulge' at a height that will average
the base from there to the ground, find the vertical
height of the measured circumference from the ground
and the slant height from the circumference to the top
of the stack. Multiply the circumference by itself and
divide by 100 and multiply by 8, then multiply the result
by the height of the base plus one-third of the slant
height of top. The hay in a round is necessarily less
compact than in a rectangular stack, hence a greater
number of feet should be allowed for a ton; with well
settled hay, probably 512 feet.

"The rules given may also be used in measuring any
kind of hay, sorghum or Kafir-fodder in the stack. How-
ever, for sorghum or Kafir-fodder only approximate
results can be procured by stack measurements because
the fodder is apt to vary greatly in weight, according to
the moisture it contains."

AIFALFA
V Btttti

ALIMTV
Hactfri.-: (rem
«*i Clovrr Tutvjrjles

Pot Culture Experiments at University of Illinois

showing effect produced upon growth of alfalfa by nitrogen-gathering bacteri

obtained from older alfalfa and Sweet clover. Reading from top to bottom

the four photographs were made five, six, seven and eight weeks,

respectively, from time of planting

CHAPTER XXVL

Practical Experiences of lAIfalfa Growers
in the United States of America

ALABAMA

Prof. J. F. Duggar, Director Alabama experiment
station. — Alfalfa is grown in Alabama with entire suc-
cess on the lime soil of the central prairie region of the
state. This is a strip of land from lo to 20 miles wide,
extending southeast and northwest almost across the
state and into Mississippi. Beginning near Union
Springs, this prairie passes near Montgomery, Selma,
Demopolis, Greensboro and northwestward towards Co-
lumbus, Miss. On the prairie lands in this area alfalfa
affords from three to six cuttings per year, usually four,
and the yield is from three to six tons per acre. Irriga-
tion is not practiced. The seed is sown either in Septem-
ber or in the early part of March, usually from 20 to 24
pounds per acre. Almost a full crop is secured the first
year from fall seeding, but only from one-third to two-
thirds of a full crop is secured the first year from sowing
seed in March. It is not customary on this soil to use
fertilizer on alfalfa, but an application of even a light
coat of stable manure immensely increases the yield on the
poor spots. Failure has generally attended attempts to

232 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

grow alfalfa on non-calcareous or sandy soils, though un-
der favorable conditions, with liberal manuring and con-
stant warfare against crab-grass, it occasionally succeeds.
In Bulletin No. 127 of the Alabama experiment station
the results in alfalfa growing are summarized as follows :
Usually the best crop to precede spring sown alfalfa is
cotton, especially if cotton follows melilotus (Sweet clo-
ver). The best crop to prepare the land for fall sown al-
falfa is cowpeas, sown very thickly. Farmers have
found that alfalfa thrives when sown on Johnson grass
meadows, holding its own, at least for the first few years,
against this aggressive grass. Dodder, a yellow thread-
like growth, is a serious enemy of alfalfa. One of the
remedies consists in mowing and burning. Seed mer-
chants often pass alfalfa seed through a machine which
is claimed to remove the dodder seed. On sandy upland
soils at z-Vuburn, alfalfa has not afforded very profitable
yields. On such soils it requires heavy applications of
lime or barnyard manure, and it is believed that more
profitable use can be made of manure. At Auburn neither
nitrate of soda nor cottonseed meal very greatly in-
creased the yield of alfalfa that was properly stocked with
root tubercles. Acid phosphate and potash fertilizers are
considered indispensable here, and generally advisable on
sandy or other soils not rich in lime. Inoculation with
soil from old fields of either alfalfa or Bur clover greatly
increases the yields of alfalfa growing on sandy land.
The germ that causes tubercles to develop on Sweet
clover also causes tubercles to develop on the roots of al-
falfa. Hence artificial inoculation of alfalfa is not neces-
sary when it is grown on prairie land that has recently

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 233

borne a crop of melilotus. Artificial inoculation of al-
falfa is probably advisable even for prairie soils when it
is uncertain whether either the melilotus or alfalfa germs
are present in great numbers. In regions in Alabama
Vshere neither alfalfa, melilotus, nor Bur clover is exten-
sively grown, inoculation of alfalfa is advisable. For
this purpose one may use soil from old fields of either of
these plants or inoculating material prepared in the lab-
oratory.

ARIZONA

John Blake, Graham county. — Alfalfa is the king of
forage plants here. It will stand considerable dry weather
and live, but it will not yield profitably unless irrigated,
or on naturally damp ground. It does not do well here
on clay soil, and if clay subsoil is near the surface it is
likely to dry out, unless watered. I have grown alfalfa
for eight years on 175 acres, first and second bottom, and
upland, with sandy and loam soils, with small patches of
clay and various subsoils ; the alluvial bottoms are usually
loam of different depths, underlaid with sand and gravel ;
the next bottom more clayey, with quicksand about 13
feet deep and gravel about 30 feet below the surface. On
first bottoms, well water is reached at a depth of 3 to 8
feet, the soil being dry on the surface only ; on the upland,
tlie soil is dry for 20 to 30 feet, or until water is reached.
Land intended for alfalfa had best be cultivated in other
crops for two or three years, thus insuring the killing off
of native brush and grass, and their roots ; then it must
be laid off in "lands" of various widths, according to
the slope, each land being leveled uniformly and bordered
to hold water. Seed may be sown in August, September,

234 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

and October; in fact, all the year, except from the middle
of April to the first of August, when it is so hot and dry
here. The quantity of seed used varies with the prepara-
tion, from 12 to 20 pounds per acre. Sow with a
"Cahoon" seeder, and cover with a brush or light harrow.
It is generally sown here with barley, wheat, or oats.
The grain is cut early for hay, or ripened and headed, in
which case the stubble and alfalfa are cut immediately
afterward and hauled off. The ground is then irrigated,
and if it has previously been foul, there will be plenty of
weeds. Another cutting in good time will usually eradi-
cate these. The plant will not winterkill here if old
enough to have four leaves before frost. We irrigate
abundantly, from the Gila river, in winter and spring,
filling up the soil and thus making less need for water
during the hot, dry period. Irrigate after each crop is
taken off, and some land is benefited by two irrigations
for each cutting. The quantity of water needed depends
on the character of the soil and subsoil ; some on the bot-
toms needs but little after the first year, and it is a good
plan, if the subsoil is open, to let the plant go without
artificial water after it has a good start, as it sends its
roots down to moisture or water, if at a reasonable depth
below ; it will then thrive on much less water, and the crop
will be more nutritious. If one is raising hay for quan-
tity, of course this does not apply. The four crops per
season yield on an average: First, i^ to 2 tons; second
and third, ij4 to 4; fourth, three-fourths to one ton. If
cutting for quantity, mow when fairly in bloom; if for
feeding, when the seed has formed. I have raised no
seed, but the crop used for that purpose is usually the sec-

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 235

ond, and it is not irrigated. The time required for curing
depends on the stage at which the hay is cut, the dryness
of the ground, etc. ; a good rule is to rake as soon as the
rake will take it up clean, and let it cure in windrows or
cocks. I use a ''Landen" single pole stacker, with slings,
which puts the hay, just as it laid on the wagon, in the
center of the stack. The seed, threshed on an ordinary
thresher, contains straw and chaff, which are easily taken
out by running through ordinary wire screen-door net-
ting, and then it is suitable for the "Cahoon" seeder. On
land worth $40 per acre, the hay in the stack costs $3 per
ton. Baling costs $2 per ton, the best size being 100 or
150 pounds in weight. Size does not affect the keeping
quality of the hay. The hay has sold here for $6 to $12,
averaging about $7.50, and the seed sold here last year
for 9 cents per pound. I do not think the straw is of
much value. Alfalfa will yield abundantly the second
year, and, if harrowed with a good harrow, digging up
the soil, it will yield for a very long period. Mine, which
is 10 years old, looks as well as it did when two years
old. To rid land of it, it would be well to plow when dry,
then cross plow later on. On naturally damp bottom it is
hard to kill. Cattle pastured on rank alfalfa in the spring
are liable to bloat.

Thomas C. Graham, Pinal county. — Though I have
been familiar with alfalfa growing for 10 years, my first
experience on a large scale was five years ago, when I
seeded the Kenilworth farms, containing 900 acres. I
was successful in securing a good stand on the entire
tract. Some of the land is upland, with sandy loam soil,
washed from the mountains, and various subsoils, hard-

236 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

pan being, in places, only 10 inches below the surface;
the remainder of the land is low, or bottom, with adobe
soil. Well water is found at a depth of 95 feet, and the
soil is dry from the surface to within a few feet of the
water stratum. Before sowing, the surface soil is plowed
and harrowed thoroughly; 20 pounds of seed is used to
the acre, and covered not more than one-half inch deep.
In our section, the best time for seeding is in September
and October, and there is no danger from the winter frost.
During the first season we cut twice or three times, to
destroy all weeds, and obtain 2j^ or 3 tons of hay per
acre, but have never been able to get a paying crop of
seed from the first season's cutting. For irrigation, we
obtain water from the Gila and Salt rivers, but in some
sections of our country water is pumped from wells by
steam pumps. It has not been found practicable to lift
the water from a greater depth than 50 feet for this pur-
pose. The first year, as the land is very dry, it requires
twice the quantity of water that is needed the second year
and after. We flood the alfalfa five or six times a year —
once in the fall, in the spring, and after each cutting,
using water enough to cover the land to a depth of about
one inch. We have no rain to amount to anything here,
and depend entirely on irrigation. I think the ground
should be prepared in the fall, and seeded in February or
March as, if seeded in the fall, the young plants might be
liable to injury from frost. In all cases, the soil should be
thoroughly prepared, and the seed not covered more than
one-half inch deep. It is not uncommon to harvest six
crops of alfalfa in a single season, and its feeding qual-
ities are unequaled for cattle, horses, or swine. It is

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 237

found, by careful tests, that alfalfa is 45 per cent better
than clover and 65 per cent better than timothy for feed-
ing farm animals. In my opinion, there is no other hay
that will equal properly cured alfalfa. That grown with-
out irrigation is much better, as it contains less sap and is
not so stalky. The threshed hay is splendid feed for
milch cows, and is sold here for the same price brought
by the hay cut earlier. Last season I pastured 65 head
of hogs on 10 acres of alfalfa, and they did well. In my
experience, it is far better than clover, from the fact that
it cannot be dislodged, the roots penetrating to a depth of
10 to 20 feet. The pasturage is profitable and satisfac-
tory for sheep and horses, and 45 per cent better for
cattle than clover. They will bloat sometimes, but if
properly handled there is little danger. The best pre-
ventive is to not allow the cattle to become too hungry.
We get, on an average, three cuttings a year, averaging i
to i}^ tons per acre each, and have pasture for five or
six months. For hay, we mow when in full bloom, rake
as soon as possible, and let stand in windrows until the
stems are about half dry; then put in the cock for two
days, and stack in large ricks of about 80 to 100 tons
each. If put up damp or green, it will mold. The seed
is harvested, usually, from the second crop, when the
pods turn black and can be shelled out by rubbing in the
hand. It is cut, raked in windrows, and allowed to stand
until thoroughly dry. I used, this season, a J. I. Case
separator, and threshed and cleaned 6000 pounds of seed
in three days. An ordinary yield is 100 pounds to the
acre, and the cost of cutting and threshing is 3 cents a
pound. The total cost of the hay in the stack is about

238 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

$3 a ton on $50 land, with 15 cents an acre for irrigation.
The average selhng price for hay is $4 a ton, and for
seed, 10 cents a pound. With proper care, alfalfa will
last time without end, and improve each year, and it is
difficult to kill it out, as it makes more or less seed every
crop. An open soil, free from hardpan, is best for it.

CALIFORNIA

Henry Miller, San Mateo county. — Since 1871, we
have gradually increased our acreage of alfalfa, until we
now have about 20,000 acres. This is on reclaimed
swamp and upland, under a complete system of irriga-
tion, with the exception of a little light, loamy soil, with
water near the surface and no irrigation. On the latter
ground the plant is short-lived, on account of the gophers.
The depth at which well water is found varies from 10
to 40 feet, and, with irrigation, it is immaterial whether
the soil is naturally moist or dry. The preparation for
seeding consists of deep plowing and cross plowing, and
the depth for planting is not over two or three inches.
For light, loamy soils, 12 pounds of seed to the acre is
ample, while for hard, rough, new land, from 16 to 20
pounds is required to insure a good stand. Seeding may
be done here after the cold season, and when danger of
heavy frost is past, but in time to take advantage of the
spring rains, which are very essential. During the first
season, the weeds should be mowed as they require it,
without regard to returns of alfalfa, and after they are
subdued it is well to let the first year's growth go to seed
and allow it to be trampled into the soil by young stock,
but if there is a full stand this is not necessary. We irri-

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 239

gate from streams, applying water as soon as the sprmg
opens and every time a crop is cut, the quantity of water
needed depending on the quahty of the soil. Drainage
is very necessary, especially when irrigation is done in
warm weather. After the first irrigation, less water is
needed at an application than at first. Winterkilling seems
to be effectually prevented by watering in the fall.
Alfalfa will attain its best state in three or four years, and
its condition after that will depend upon its treatment.
We put stock on our land generally after the first and
second growth is cut, and the only rest the land receives
is when it is being irrigated. After hay has been cut for
several years, we harrow in the spring with a heavy har-
row or disk cutter, and take the opportunity to reseed
that which shows lack of vigor. The more sun and the
less shade there is, the better the growth and the more
satisfactory the yield. We find it more difficult to get a
stand than to get rid of it ; but, in some instances, where
we have wanted the land for orchard, vegetables, or root
crops, we found several plowings would destroy it. W^ith-
out irrigation, we have net found the crop very profitable,
but there are a few favored spots in the state where it
can be grown without water; but when we plant we
usually select such land as can be put under a perfect
system of irrigation before using. Longevity of the
plant depends on treatment and on the nature of the soil.
On heavy adobe soil it will not live and thrive as long
as on loamy soil, and on sandy, light soil it will be of
short duration without constant and judicious irrigation.
After the first season, we make two cuttings a year, and
consider two tons to the acre each time a good yield. For

240 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

hay, we cut when the first crop is moderately ripe — say
nearly in full bloom; the second crop and any later ones
are cut when the bloom first shows ; otherwise the lower
leaves will drop off. The first crop is generally prefer-
able for seed, provided butterflies and other insects have
not injured the bloom, as they often do. If the second
crop is used for seed, it should ripen longer than the first.
The crop for seed is mowed, windrowed as soon as pos--
sible, allowed to dry in that state, gathered with a hand
fork, loaded on hay wagons, and put in stack as gently
as possible. We find a good crop of seed a rare thing,
but use the ordinary threshing outfit, and turn out 800
to 1000 pounds a day, in rare instances double that quan-
tity, with a cost for threshing and cleaning of about 5
cents a pound. The hay we never put in barns, but stack
in small, narrow ricks, to ?void danger of heating, endeav-
oring to get it in the rick as dry as possible, gathering in
the forenoons to avoid shelling. When we use our own
press and men, the cost of baling does not exceed $1 per
ton. The weight of the bale depends on the kind of press
used. An average, handy bale weighs about 150 to 175
pounds, and we never have any trouble about the hay
keeping perfectly in bales of that size. The average price
per ton for hay in our San Francisco market is about $8
to $10; of seed, by the ton, 8 to 12^ cents a pound, 10
cents a pound being about the usual average price. For
feeding farm animals, good, well-cured alfalfa hay is
better than clover. For milch stock, especially, we con-
sider it fully as good as any other hay. We find but little
difference between the straw and the hay, and while all
stock like the straw better, there is no doubt that the hay

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 24 1

contains the more nutriment. Like all rank growths, al-
falfa will produce double under irrigation, and the quan-
tity will greatly overbalance any possible improvement in
quality without irrigation, for I have found little differ-
ence between that grown by irrigation and under natural
moisture. For horses, there is no pasture better than the
alfalfa; for sheep and cattle, it sometimes works injury
by way of bloat, caused by too rapid grazing, especially
when there is dew, thin cattle and young stock being most
liable. Cattle in high condition and cows suckling or vv^ell
forward in calf do not bloat. As preventive of the bloat,
hay should be kept in the pasture where the stock can
run to it, and a good supply of salt in troughs to which
they have constant access. The plant will not stand
trampling by stock unless the surface of the ground be
entirely dry, and we do not allow sheep or cattle on the
fields during certain stages of growth nor during certain
states of the weather. We consider this pasture better
than clover for swine, especially when the ground has a
smooth surface, but if the soil is of a sandy nature, and
allowed to dry, it is not so good. The capacity per acre
depends on the nature of the soil, and the gain in weight
made by the hogs depends on the breed and on the com-
fort they have. We can raise hogs on alfalfa, and by
feeding them two months on grain (say barley, wheat,
or Egyptian corn) they will average, when lo months
old, 250 pounds, gross.

/. B. De Jarnette, Colusa county. — I have had ii years'
experience with alfalfa, and have about lOO acres border-
ing on the Sacramento river. The soil ranges in depth
from 10 to 20 feet, and rests on a clay subsoil, while

242 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

water is reached at a depth of from 12 to 20 feet. In
sinking two wells on my place, the soil was found as fol-
lows: First 12 feet, decomposed vegetable matter; 4 feet
of quicksand; 4 feet of clay loam; 4 feet of hardpan; 16
feet of yellow clay; 6 feet of hardpan; 2 feet of black
sand, and at 48 feet, coarse gravel. The ground should
be thoroughly pulverized — the finer the better — after
plowing at least 12 inches deep, and then seeded with not
less than 25 pounds of seed to the acre. I have had the
best results from sowing in the early fall, immediately
after the first rains, using the "Gem" seeder, harrowing
in with very light harrow, and rolling the ground well.
The first crop is usually quite weedy, and of little value,
but the second is better, producing about i^ tons of hay
to the acre, if the stand is good. Stock of all kinds should
be kept off the first year. There is no danger here of
winterkilling, and by the second year the full yield is real-
ized. The length of time the plant continues vigorous
depends on the treatment. If pastured extensively, it will
require to be reseeded in from five to eight years; but
otherwise it may go considerably longer. I invariably
obtain three crops a year, averaging per acre for the first
2^, and for the others Ij4 to 2 tons. I irrigate only in
the winter, when the river is bank full and I can turn in
water from it. Alfalfa produces the best results with
irrigation after each cutting, and in that case there are
five to seven cuttings obtainable, where with winter flood-
ing I can secure the three only. I mow for hay as soon as
the bloom begins to develop, raking in the afternoon fol-
lowing the morning cutting, commence hauling about the
third day after, and then put in the barn with plenty of

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 243

salt. The third crop is given the preference for seed, ana
is harvested when the plant is well matured. I let it cure
in the windrows and haul to the thresher, handling as
little as possible. The common yield of seed is from lOO
pounds up, according to the stand. The cost of my hay,
on land worth $ioo to $150 per acre, does not exceed $2
per ton, and it sells for from $5 to $8, while seed brings
from 8 to 16 cents per pound. The hay after threshing
is of but little value. The pasture is unquestionably the
most profitable I have ever had any experience with, sup-
porting more stock of any kind to the acre than any other
forage plant. In early spring, cattle are liable to bloat
on the rank alfalfa, but after the first of June I have had
no trouble. There is no special difficulty in ridding land
of the plant, and it is undoubtedly as good for fertilizing
as Red clover.

COLORADO

Jacob Downing, Arapahoe county. — I introduced alfal-
fa into Colorado in 1862, and have between 500 and 700
acres. It is on upland, clay, sandy and loam soil, with
some adobe subsoil, but mostly sandy loam; it is gener-
ally dry to sand rock, and then it is necessary to drill 50
to 100 feet to get water. The plant will not thrive where
there is hardpan, but will grow in any soil that is dry. Un-
like most other forage plants it derives considerable nour-
ishment from the air and water, though too much
moisture will kill it. After deep plowing and thor-
ough pulverizing of the soil, the land should be
scraped thoroughly smooth, as this cannot be done
after sowing, and is needed to make the mower
work smoothly. I sow about 25 pounds to the acre,

244 "^I^^ BOOK OF ALFALFA

drilling in about two inches deep, 12^ pounds one way,
and the other I2j/^ pounds across it, thus making an even
stand. Prefer to sow in the spring, early. After the
plant is eight inches high, it may be cut and used for feed,
but is not very good. After this there will be no weeds.
It matures in three years, and after that is good for seed.
I have seen, near the city of Mexico, fields of alfalfa 300
years old that had been constantly cropped and never
reseeded. It will last 1000 years, and possibly forever.
Irrigate from streams, as is required; when there is a
great deal of heat and wind, probably three times. The
water must not run too long, or the plant will be killed,
and the land should be kept as dry as possible during the
winter, particularly in cold climates, as on wet soil alfalfa
winterkills. Well water is better than the stream, pro-
vided it is pumped into a reservoir and allowed to get
warm. Water is brought from the streams by ditches.
Less water can be used the first year than after the plant
is matured. I am five miles west of Denver, and 500
feet above the city, in warm valleys. With plenty of
water, I can obtain three cuttings a year. Have raised
as much as 3^2 tons to the acre at one cutting, and my
highest yield of seed per acre has been nine bushels. Hay
is cut when the plant is in bloom, cured until it is dry to
the touch of the hand. Stacking by hand makes the best
bay, as machinery is likely to pack it in bunches, causing
il to heat and become dusty. Hay in the stack costs
about $1.50 per ton. Baling costs $2 per ton ; 100-pound
bales are well esteemed, but it is probable that large bales
keep better than small, if properly cured. The seed pod
assumes the form of a cornucopia, and, when the seed is

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 245

ripe, it is of a rich orown or mahogany color. The first
crop is preferable for seed, and should be cut and stacked
as the hay is. It can be left and threshed when most con-
venient, but the longer it remains in the stack the more
easily its threshes. The ordinary threshing machine does
for the alfalfa, but the seed must be fanned to be market-
able. Six bushels is a common yield, and the cost of
threshing and cleaning is probably 25 cents per bushel.
The price of hay has ranged from $5 to $15 per ton, and
of seed, from 8 to 20 cents per pound. The straw has
almost no value, as it is cut up very fine, and can be used
only where it is threshed ; if fed there, it is very fattening.
For feeding horses for slow work, the hay is better than
clover or timothy. For fattening purposes, it is the best
in the world, for, while the animal lays on fat, it is never
feverish, but always healthy. For pasturing cattle and
swine, alfalfa is superior to anything else, and, after it
is mown, it makes very excellent feed for horses and
sheep. If the alfalfa is wet, ruminants pastured on it
bloat and die very quickly. It is not properly a pasture
plant, and such animals should be kept away from it,
but the hay, properly cured, is superior to any other food
raised for fattening purposes. There is no difficulty in
ridding land of the plant, as a good team and sharp plow
will cut it out without any trouble. I have plowed fields
of alfalfa under and put in oats, obtaining three or four
times the usual yield, and have known of 50 bushels of
wheat to the acre on broken alfalfa land.

L. TV. Markham, Prowers county. — I have had four
years' experience with alfalfa. Have under my charge
500 acres. It is on both second bottom and upland ; part

246 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

has clay subsoil, other dark loam, and all has more or
less sand. Water is reached at from 10 to 40 feet, and on
land not irrigated the soil is dry all the way down to the
water veins. The preferred time for sowing is either
April I or August i. Have as good success right on the
sod as on old land. If to raise seed only, 10 pounds is
sufficient to the acre ; for hay, 20 pounds is not too much.
Seed not more than two inches deep. About June 15 cut
weeds and tops of young alfalfa, and then irrigate well,
and you get one-half to one ton of hay in September. It
is best to not try for seed the first year, but give all the
strength to the roots. It does not winterkill here. We
irrigate from the Arkansas river, and the number of irri-
gations depends on the soil. The first year requires twice
as much water as later ones. Usually three applications
are needed : in early spring, mid-summer, and late fall.
I have 160 acres not irrigated for three years. We have
three cuttings, yielding i;[^ to 2 tons per acre each. Cut
for hay just when coming into full bloom, and stack in
the field — never in barn — in long ricks, 12 feet wide
by 80 to 120 feet long. It will not heat in the stack. Let
all pods become dark brown or black before cutting for
seed. The second crop is preferable, unless there is a
large acreage, when I take one-half the first crop and one-
half the second, in order to help the farmer out with
work. Have men follow the machine closely, and cock
up, to remain four or five days before stacking. Never
cut for seed with a mowing machine, as you will lose one-
third of the crop in trying to gather it. The cost of
alfalfa in the stack is not over $2 at the outside. To bale
— preferably in 80-pound bales — costs $1.50 per ton. An

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 247

ordinary yield of seed is five bushels per acre. The cost
for threshing is 60 cents per bushel. There is a special
alfalfa huller, as even the ordinary clover huller is not a
success. For a number of years the average price paid
the farmer for alfalfa seed has been $4.50 per bushel,
and hay in the stack has sold for $3.50 to $5. For feed-
ing farm animals, alfalfa hay is far more valuable than
timothy or clover. Horses will work and do well the
year round on the first cutting of alfalfa, and no grain
whatever. The pasturage for hogs and cattle is far bet-
ter than clover, and is profitable and satisfactory for
horses and sheep. I have 250 hogs now, and raise them
to weigh 200 pounds on green alfalfa alone; turn the
sows in the lot in early spring ; they raise their young, and
I never bother ^hem for eight months at a time, as they
have plenty of alfalfa and water. Put cattle on the pas-
ture in early spring and let them run, and few, if any,
will bloat ; but when they are not used to it, they eat too
fast, or too much, and bloat. The hay is not so good
after it is threshed as that cut earlier for hay alone, but
the straw sells readily at $1.50 in the stack. The stand
gets better every year for hay, and I know of fields in
old Mexico 60 years old that have never been reseeded.
There is no difficulty in ridding land of the plant if it is
plowed under eight inches deep while green. It makes
Tar better green manure than does red clover. On the
same quarter section, wheat grown on old wheat land
produced 20 bushels per acre, and that on broken alfalfa
land 50 bushels per acre.

CONNECTICUT

Dr. E. H. Jenkins, Director Connecticut experiment
station. — Alfalfa has been tried in a haphazard way in

248 THE BOOK 01? ALFALFA

Connecticut for many years and scattered plants and
colonies may often be seen in fence corners and headlands.
Within five years, however, some farmers under direction
of the agricultural station at New Haven, or on their own
initiative, have made more careful experiments and while
failures are numerous, there are at present a number of
small areas well established, yielding three or four cut-
tings yearly and highly valued by their owners. On the
farm of C. W. Beach of West Hartford, F. H. Stad-
mueller had for seven years a considerable field of alfalfa
which yielded well and was used as a soiling crop. Mr.
Barnard of North Haven, after repeated failures, has a
fine field and feeds it to both cows and poultry. The
Gaylord Farm sanatorium at Wallingford, John Matthies
of New Mil ford and others might be cited as successful
growers of alfalfa. It does well on a variety of soils with
us. Liming heavily, 1500 to 2000 pounds per acre, is a
necessity. Some form of inoculation of the soil is gen-
erally required and clean, well-tilled land. Weeds are the
worst enemy of the newly seeded alfalfa and easily
smother the crop. For that reason we prefer August
seeding, using at least 30 pounds of clean, fresh seed. It
will pay to fallow the land, in order to kill the weeds be-
fore seeding down. Thin spots cannot be successfully
patched by seeding later. Great care in preparing the
land pays with a permanent crop like alfalfa.

DELAWARE

Dr. Arthur T. Ncale, Director Delaware experiment
station. — Twenty years ago, I drilled alfalfa in rows 18
inches apart, and cultivated at intervals of ten days until
the crop occupied the ground, seeding late in March, say

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES ^49

the 28th. The first cutting of nearly 8 tons of green
forage per acre was made nine weeks later. Thereafter
four additional cuttings were made that season, resulting
in a total yield of 21 tons of green forage per acre. This
plot remained in good profit, all told, for five years. An
adjoining plot seeded broadcast, grew into a \veed crop
the first year, but during four succeeding years w^as in
every respect the equal of its neighbor, the drilled plot.
Twenty similar experiments made during that year in as
many other sections of the state failed utterly. The dates
of seeding were in every instance subsequent to March 28,
but followed each other as rapidly as men could travel
from point to point, drilling the seed on w^ell and previ-
ously prepared soil. Two years later nine similar failures
resulted from spring seedmgs. Late summer is now the
time most frequently selected for alfalfa secdings, but
success is by no means invariably attained even then.
Liming has been of service in one five-acre test con-
ducted in Kent county, by W. H. Dickson in co-operatioii
with this station. The third trial withm four consecutive
years appears at present to be a complete success. The
first seeding gave a satisfactory stand, but the plants died
late in the following spring. The ground was limed that
summer, after thorough preparation of the seedbed.
Nitro-cultures from federal sources were used upon por-
tions of the seed, and 1000 pounds of soil per acre from a
successful alfalfa plantation were applied to the other
areas. This second seeding also failed. The five-acre
plot was then plowed, wheat was drilled and a fair crop
resulted. The wheat was harvested, lime was again used
after the seedbed had been prepared, and alfalfa seed sown

250 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

as usual. The crop this year has exceeded anticipations.
The check strip, to which no hme whatever has been ap
phed, but upon which nitro-cultures were used, carries
no crop. It will be disked after the third cutting of alfalfa
this year, well limed and again seeded.

GEORGIA

Prof. R. J. Redding, Director Georgia experiment
station. — This station has successfully cultivated alfalfa
for 12 years, and we have never found it necessary to
inoculate when we have sown the seed on rich, well pre-
pared land. The plants at once became supplied with
nitrogen tubercles and grew as luxuriantly as might be
expected from the quality of the land. Our practice is to
fertilize annually in January or February by sowing from
800 to 1000 pounds of acid phosphate and one-fourth as
much muriate of potash per acre. We run a cutaway
harrow over the alfalfa two or three times in different
directions. We then use a smoothing harrow and finally
a heavy roller. This puts the land in good shape for the
mowing machine and at the same time destroys weeds
that come up during the fall and early winter. I believe
that it is not desirable to continue land in alfalfa more
than six or eight years, because of the impossibility of
preventing infestation of weeds to such extent as to very
greatly diminish the yield of alfalfa. We have a plot
growing, that was sown about April 10, which seems to
be as favorable a time as any, provided there shall be one
or two good rains to give the young plants a start. The
main factors in success are: First, a deep, well-prepared
and well-drained soil, made very rich; and second, good
seed, carefully sown and repeated mowings at the proper
time.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 25 1

IDAHO

H. W. Kiefer, Bingham county. — I have grown alfalfa
in Idaho, under irrigation, for 12 years. Have 40 acres
on second bottom, heavy clay soil for 12 feet. This sub-
soil pulverizes by the action of the air, and will produce a
good crop of small grain. Water is reached at loo feet.
The 12 feet of clay is dry; the gravel and sand below are
more or less moist till water is reached. Land having
produced two successive crops of small grain is preferred
for alfalfa. Sow 20 pounds, in the spring, and cover
lightly with harrow, brush, or drag, or roll. The plants
should be vigorous enough to choke out weeds. Amount
of hay obtained the first year is governed by conditions
and treatment. When sudden freezing and thawing
occur, it is liable to winterkill. The frequency of our
irrigation is governed by the rainfall, but is usually done
when the ground is dry, without regard to stage of
growth, allowing the water to run until the soil is wet the
depth of a spade; usually average two irrigations to each
cutting. Our supply of water comes from Snake river
and tributaries, which furnish sufficient for the Snake
river valley. Have noticed no difference in amount of
w^ater required during first or later years, except as
affected by the amount of rainfall. We get three cut-
tings, averaging about five tons for the season, cutting
for hay when in bloom, and for seed when seed is
matured, which generally requires the entire season to
mature in this locality. The seed crop should be handled
as little as possible, to avoid loss of seed. Alfalfa should
cure at least two days, and, if dry, will not mold in stack.
The cost of alfalfa hay, if irrigated, is about $2 per ton.

252 tHE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Cost of baling, $1.75 per ion, ni bales weighing 75 to 100
pounds, the keeping being governed more by the solidity
than size of bale. During the past six years, hay has
averaged about $4 per ton, in the stack, and seed about 8
cents per pound. Alfalfa makes satisfactory pasturage
for sheep and horses. Cattle are liable to bloat, but, if
taken in time, may be relieved with a gag, and by exer-
cise which will cause the gases to escape ; the knife is used
as a last resort. The straw from which seed has been
threshed has about the same value as green oat straw.
The various soils here appear equally favorable to longev-
ity Usually the third year gives about the best yield.
If not damaged by freezing, it will not need reseeding
for 10 or 15 years. We have no trouble in ridding land
of alfalfa. We cut a hay crop, and plow under, for spring
wheat, with good results. Our best alfalfa land is clay,
which requires moisture, artificial or natural. Our best
yields have been six tons per acre for the season. The
feeding qualities of the hay have been well established.
James Otterson, Logan county. — Have had 12 years'
experience growing alfalfa on sagebrush land, that will
grow nothing but sagebrush witliout irrigation. It is
fine, sandy loam, extending down 6 to 10 feet, where
lava is encountered, which is from i to 100 feet deep.
The soil is dry until water is struck, which is at a depth
of from 100 to 200 feet. There is no water in the soil.
When preparing for alfalfa, we plow well, level the
ground, and sow 15 to 20 pounds of seed per acre, and
harrow lightly, or brush it in. Sow as early as the ground
can be worked — about March i. The first crop, if prop-
erly handled, will yield from three to five tons per acre ;

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 253

it will have more or less sunflowers, which are a protec-
tion while the plant is getting a start. It seldom winter-
kills. We irrigate by flooding the ground twice each sea-
son from a stream. After the first year, three cuttings are
had; 2^ tons per acre the first; i]^ to 2 the second; and
one ton per acre the third. Cut for hay as soon as well
blossomed. It grows too rank here for seed. Hay should
cure in from one to two days, and, if properly cured,
stack as other hay. Alfalfa costs, in stack, $3 per ton.
The size of bales is immaterial, except in fitting cars.
Prices for hay have ranged from $5 to $10 per ton; for
seed, from 7 to 15 cents per pound. It is the best hay in
use for farm animals. Horses will thrive on it without
grain, if properly handled. For swine pasture it is far
ahead of clover. It is satisfactory for sheep. In some
localities it will cause cattle to bloat ; as a preventive, feed
well with dry hay before turning them on the pasture.
Deep soil is the best for the long life of the plant. The
second year it is at its best, and, if properly handled, and
does not winterkill, will last for all time. It is much bet-
ter than Red clover for green manure.

ILLINOIS

Prof. C. G. Hopkins, Agronomist Illinois experiment
station. — Alfalfa is being introduced into Illinois to a
considerable extent. Very careful and somewhat exten-
sive investigations conducted by the experiment station,
beginning in 1901, have positively established the fact that
alfalfa can be grown in this state on several of our most
abundant types of soil. As a rule, it is markedly advan-
tageous to thoroughly inoculate the soil with alfalfa bac-

254 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

teria, preferably by taking infected soil iiCm a well-estab-
lished alfalfa field, where root tubercles are found in
abundance or from land where Sweet clover (melilotus),
has been growing successfully for several years. Infected
Sweet clover soil serves just as well as infected alfalfa
soil for the inoculation of alfalfa fields. As a rule, the
best results are secured from summer seeding. The land
should be thoroughly prepared and made as free from
weeds and foul grass as possible and then seeded between
June 15 and August 15, if the conditions are favorable.
Under exceptional conditions good results are obtained
from earlier and later seeding. Three cuttings are usually
obtained in the northern part of the state and four in the
southern part. The average yield is five or six tons per
acre. A liberal use of farm manure in getting the alfalfa
started is advantageous and on some soils the application
of lime is necessary in order to correct the acidity of the
soil. As a rule, the yield is increased by adding to the
soil some form of phosphorous. A yield of 8^ tons of
thoroughly air-dry hay has been obtained where a special
effort has been made to make the conditions favorable.

INDIANA

C. M. Ginther, Wayne county writes in Orange Jiidd
Farmer, July 8, 1905 : — *'Up to last year there had not
been half a dozen attempts to grow alfalfa in Wayne
county, not because there was no desire on the part of
the farmers to raise the crop, but because the farmers
knew absolutely nothing about the methods to pursue in
order to get a fair stand. Last year, however, a number
of agriculturists in the county determined to try the crop.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 2^^

A mile west of Richmond lies the farm of J. H. Hollings-
worth, a well-known farmer, whose practical ideas about
farming have given him a local reputation. He is an
advocate of intensive farming and cultivates his crops in
the most thorough manner. He keeps a herd of dairy
cattle and in his search for more economical food than
mill stuffs and clover hay, he decided to try alfalfa and
feed it with a ration of corn meal. He had a tract of five
acres. This land was a clay loam with a good mixture
of sand. It was not underdrained, and Mr. Hollingsworth
believes the result would have been better had there been
a thorough system of underdrainage. The soil is what
is known here as sugar tree land. About May i of last
year, the tract was plowed moderately and then rolled.
During the previous winter a heavy top-dressing of barn-
yard manure had been applied to two acres for the pur-
pose of comparison. One week later the roller was run
over it again. After this the ground was thoroughly torn
up with a two-horse cultivator. This was for the purpose
of killing the weeds, which had been given time to take
a start. After the cultivator had thoroughly torn up the
ground, the field was harrowed twice both ways. It was
then rolled, and pronounced in first-class condition. The
weeds had succumbed to these repeated attacks and but
very few appeared in the crop later. This thorough prep-
aration of the ground is absolutely necessary for the suc-
cessful starting of alfalfa. It is a fastidious plant, re-
quiring the most favorable surroundings in its early life,
but gradually grows quite robust and strong. Its early
wrecks seem to be the critical time in its life, and if it can

256 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

once be started well its thrifty nature will assert itself
and it will grow with amazing rapidity. On June 1 1 the
seed was planted. It was sown broadcast and harrowed
in lightly. One hundred pounds pure alfalfa seed were
sown, which was 20 pounds to the acre. The experience
of many others is that 15 pounds per acre is better. The
seed was first treated with bacteria, procured from the
department of agriculture at Washington, and when the
seeds were thoroughly dry, they were planted. Exactly
five weeks after the seed was planted, the crop was i foot
high and covered the ground everywhere. On that day
it was clipped first and later given two more clippings
during the season. The effect of the clipping was to cause
the crop to become more stalky, and spread out more
over the ground. None of the crop was removed from
the soil last year, the three clippings being allowed to
remain about the roots as a mulch. This was regarded as
highly important and its effect was noticeable in the per-
fect manner in which the crop passed through the win-
ter. Early this spring it started to grow and on April 18
the plants averaged 12 inches high all over the tract. Mr.
Hollingsworth is a firm believer in the efficacy of the
bacterial treatment of the seed before planting. He at-
tributes the wonderful growth of this crop to the effect of
the organisms produced by inoculation. It is interesting
to note the effect of the top-dressing which was applied to
two acres of the tract. The crop on that part of the
ground is larger and more luxuriant than the part that
received no dressing. The crop all over the tract appears
vigorous and healthy, but the two acres show a decided
improvement and superiority."

Cutting Alfalfa in Southern California

Bailing Alfalfa in Southern Oklahoma

A 400-ton Rick of Alfalfa

in Malheur County, southeastern Oregon. Dimensions, 400x30x26 feet

A Cable Derrick, Provided with a Grapple Fork

The cable is supported by poles at the ends, and these in turn by guy ropes

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 257

Farmers Guide says: — With alfalfa more generally
grown throughout Indiana we are hearing less complaint
regarding hay crop failures. In fact, some farmers who
have taken our advice and tried the crop are now saying
that they are having all they can do to take care of their
crops of hay. Think of cutting four or even three crops
of good hay from the same area each season. Isn't it
worth being busy and not going fishing when a farmer
can do that? It means an enormous saving in high-
priced land when ten acres will produce as much hay as
thirty or more formerly did, and hay better in quality
also. And then, think of keeping a field in meadow
thirty, forty, or more years and having it growing better
each year. There is not much necessity for crop rotation
under those conditions, is there? especially when every
season means three or four crops of good hay. But that
is the way with alfalfa and the more farmers get of it the
more they usually want. We are glad so many Indiana
farmers are getting busy with this crop, and there is i;o
question of its keeping them busy if they will only give
it a trial.

IOWA.

Prof M. L. Bowman, Department Farm Crops, Iowa
experiment station. — We are receiving very good results
from the alfalfa which is being grown at this station, mak-
ing from three to four cuttings each season with the yield
ranging from 4 to 7 tons to the acre. From one field,
seeded in August, 1905, the first cutting was taken June
II, 1906, and yielded 2.17 tons per acre. Two other cut-
tings were made. We believe alfalfa is sure to become

258 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

one of Iowa's great crops as desirable results are being
obtained in many parts of the state where land is prop-
erly seeded. We take great pains to see that the ground
is in good physical condition and that the seed is sown
in late summer, some time between August 5 and 15, so
that the young plants will make sufficient growth to with-
stand the winter. If the seeding takes place in the fall,
the alfalfa plants will not make sufficient growth to with-
stand the winter. Alfalfa should not be pastured the first
season. The growth from seeding time until winter sets
in should be 6 to 8 inches and should be left on the ground
for winter protection. A nurse crop should not be used.
Alfalfa will not do well on low, wet ground, but must
have land that is well drained. In the northern parts of
the state it may be sown in the spring, and in this case
desirable results have been secured by using a nurse crop.
If oats are used at all, they should be an early variety.
Wheat or barley is much better. They are not so likely
to lodge. If the nurse crop is heavy, a poor stand of
alfalfa is almost sure to follow. Not more than one-half
the usual amount of grain should be sown to the acre.
Better results may be expected if no nurse crop is used.
In this case, it will be necessary for the weeds to be mowed
down two or three times during the summer, so that the
alfalfa will not be choked out. It is better to sow in the
spring than late in the fall. Late summer seeding is
the best. The following year it will be freer from weeds
'and have a better stand than that which was sown the
spring before. Cornstalk ground which was well ma-
nured the year before for corn is generally used for
spring seeding. The stalks should first be removed. The

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 259

field may then be thoroughly disked and harrowed. The
seed should be sown about the middle of April.

KANSAS.

C. D. Perry, Clark county. — In 1887, I sowed 200
acres of alfalfa, and now have 270 acres. This is nearly
all on second bottom land, with black, sandy loam, black
sand, and gumbo. The land is largely "made" land,
about 6 to 12 feet of good soil, with gumbo only on
top for 12 or 14 inches. On the heavy land the dry soil
begins at the top, and, at the breaking of the sod, extended
down eight or nine feet. Water is found at a depth of 12
to 21 feet. We irrigate most of our crop from the Cimar-
ron river. The first time the land is watered it takes from
two to five times as much water as is required later, and
now we find the best results are obtained by watering
about 10 days before cutting, using three or four inches
of water. There is no damage by frost, except on low,
wet land. Without irrigation, I should double plow the
ground before seeding, having one plow follow the other
in the same furrow, and going as deep as possible. Seed
by drilling one-half to one inch deep, 10 pounds to the
acre for seed, 20 pounds for hay, and 30 pounds for pas-
ture, usually about March 15 here. W^e mow the weeds
the first year before they seed, leaving them on the
ground. After this, there will be a yield of three-fourths
to two tons of hay, or one to six bushels of seed to the
acre, depending on the season. In two or three years the
plant is at its best, and does not seem to need reseeding
after that. We have from three to five crops a year

26o THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

depending on promptness in watering and cutting. Any
later cutting is better than the first for seed, and,
before cutting, two-thirds of the seed pods should be
black. We mow, then rake and cock at once, stacking as
soon as well cured. Hay should be cut when it is coming
into bloom. To make good hay, let it lie for half a day
(if dry weather), then rake and cock, and let cure thor-
oughly. We stack in long ricks, and it keeps well. The
alfalfa land is valued at $50 an acre, and the four irriga-
tions cost 25 cents each; the estimated cost of the alfalfa
in the stack is $2.15 a ton. An average yield of seed is
three bushels to the acre, and the cost of threshing and
cleaning it is 80 cents a bushel. Hay has sold for $5 a
ton, and seed for 6, 8 and 10 cents a pound. The threshed
hay is not so good as that cut earlier, but cattle eat it all
clean. The pasture is excellent for horses, hogs, and
cattle. H the alfalfa is wet, it is liable to cause bloating
with sheep; for cattle, there is not much danger, except
for the first few days they are turned on. H the animal
is seen in time, it may be relieved by driving around, but
if too bad to be helped in that way, it needs the trocar. I
have had 50 hogs on six acres of pasture this summer,
and have 50 pigs, 3 to 12 weeks old; used two bushels
of ground wheat and barley each day, and think I could
have had as many more hogs on the pasture. The sod is
very hard to plow, but it can be killed. On a piece of hog
pasture plowed under, I raised 70 bushels of barley to the
acre. My alfalfa seems to do the best on black, sandy
land and on gumbo, with sand or open subsoil below.

/. R. Blacksherc, Chase county. — I began with alfalfa
in 1875, by sowing i>4 bushels of seed bought in San

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 26l

Francisco, at the rate of $21 per bushel. As the germi-
nation was defective, or the seed grown so far away was
not adapted to our soil or climatic conditions, a good
stand was not at first obtained, but I now have 700 acres
on Cottonwood river bottom land, having a clay sub-
soil underlaid by a layer of sand 20 feet below, and with
a good portion of gumbo, where the best alfalfa grows.
The soil is not especially moist until water, 20 to 30 feet
below, is reached. My best results have been obtained
on corn land, cutting across the rows with a disk harrow,
leveling with a plank drag, and sowing, after danger of
freezing is past, 20 pounds of seed per acre with a disk
having seeder attachment, being sure to have all the seed
covered. I cut the weeds off with a mower, and leave
them on the ground. After the first year my average
product annually for 10 or 12 years has been about five
tons per acre. That permitted to ripen seed yields three
to five bushels per acre. I do not irrigate. The plant
will thrive on upland having a clay subsoil without a
stratum of hardpan. Grazed closely late in the fall, it is
liable to die out in a dry winter.

Benj. Brown, Osborne county. — I have had four years'
experience with alfalfa growing in this country, and have
also grown it in England, without any irrigation, and
now have 45 acres. The land is bottom rising to second
bottom, with vegetable loam and some gumbo in the
upper portion, and loam subsoil, similar to surface, but
somewhat paler, for 15 feet down. Well water is found
by digging 11 to 22 feet through the soil, which is
usually moist except in dry weather, when the upper two
or three feet are not. It has been found best to plow six

262 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

inches deep, in August or September ; to roll or level with
a heavy float about April 15, then harrow, and broadcast
25 pounds (or drill 20 pounds) of seed to the acre. I
broadcast all of mine, and harrow and roll or level. The
best time for sowing here is April 14 to 30, as it almost
invariably rains here about April 20, and frosts have
never hurt my crop, nor does it winterkill. Mow first
when the weeds are six to nine inches high, and, if worth
hauling, stack; if not, let lie; generally mow again about
July 4 to 20, and stack; there may be one- fourth to one-
half ton of hay per acre. The second season we cut
three times, unless we ripen seed, and obtain from one-
fourth to one ton each cutting; after this it grows about
a foot high by October. For hay, mow as soon as
about half full of flowers, rake the same morning,
and haul in one or two days, as the leaves fall if
dry. It does not heat nor mold here if the sap is half
out and the straw long; I use the ''Acme" hay har-
vester, making stacks with rounded ends, nine steps
long by five wide, and top out with straw or hay, taking
care to keep the middle well filled. The total cost of hay
in stack is about $1.50 per ton, the land being valued at
$15 per acre, or $60 with a good stand of alfalfa. The
hay has sold for $4 to $6 per ton during the past four
years. The best crop for seed depends on the weather;
sometimes the first flowers set best, and again the later
ones do better; on my bottom land the plant grows too
large for seed, unless in a dry time. If seed is ripe, cut
only while damp or in the early morning, rake into rows
immediately or early the next morning, haul with a
"Monarch" rake, and use a stacker. Last year and year

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 263

before I obtained four bushels of seed to the acre, and it
cost me 60 cents per bushel for cleaning. Used ordinary-
threshing outtit, and set hind end of thresher 10 inches
lower than front. The seed has sold here during four
years for $5 to $8 per bushel. Horses and sheep should
not be pastured on the alfalfa, as it pays to mow and haul
it to them, either green or dry. It makes good pasturage
for cattle, but they must not be turned on when the ground
is frozen, nor when they are hungry, as it is necessary to
start them gradually to avoid bloating. Mine never
have bloated, and I feed milch cows in the early spring
and on the fourth crop in the fall. Alfalfa ripened and
threshed has little value, as it breaks up into dust and
chaff. My stand improved every year; was about at its
best the sixth year, and continues about the same for an
indefinite time. If it gets a fair start, and is cut three
times, a good stand can be kept; but if it is pastured, and
the weeds are not eaten, it is apt to thin itself. A neigh-
bor plowed under alfalfa for green manure, but the next
year it grew up as thick and strong as if not plowed.
We do not need manure here. I have seen several pieces
of fairly good alfalfa on high prairie, with some gumbo
in the soil, but it grows best where the subsoil is fairly
open. Upland is generally best for seed, as the plants
should grow only one to two feet high, and mine on the
bottom grows 2 to 3^ after the second year. I think
there is no other crop here to compare with alfalfa. My
third year's crop cleared me over $20 per acre. I have
known of nine bushels of seed on one acre, and have
heard of 15 in this county. My bottom lands will grow
three good crops of hay almost without rain, and kill out
all the weeds.

264 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

IvENTUCKY

Prof. H. Garman, Botanist Kentucky experiment sta-
tion,— We have grown alfalfa on the experiment farm
for a good many years and have been impressed with its
many good qualities, although we have not found it as
well adapted to our soil and climate as it appears to be
in the western states. In our small experimental plots,
on good soil, it has recently done remarkably well. This
is partly the result of understanding it better than for-
merly, and partly due to the care which these plots re-
ceive. Last year we harvested, from some of them, hay
at the rate of from 6.32 to 10.03 tons per acre. The
same plots are yielding very well this season, but I think
will not produce quite as much hay as last year, though
they look very well at present. Farmers in this state are
becoming interested in alfalfa, stimulated by the reports
made to them at farmers' institutes, and urged by failure
to grow Red clover successfully in some parts of the
state. But thus far they have not met with uniform
success. Part of this is due to a lack of acquaintance with
the plant and part may be attributed to our climate. A
few men have been growing alfalfa successfully for
eight or 10 years, and I can see no reason why many
others should not succeed with it. The chief difficulty
appears to come in getting a start. Alfalfa, thoroughly
started, holds its own better than Red clover and yields
much more forage. The value of the forage is recog-
nized by everybody, and I expect to see in the course of
the next quarter of a century a much larger acreage sown
in Kentucky.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 26:

LOUISIANA.

Prof. W. R. Dodson, Director Louisiana experiment
station. — Alfalfa has been grown by the Louisiana sta-
tions since 1887. At the time the stations were estab-
lished there was little or no alfalfa grown in the state.
From the very first experiments conducted by Dr. W. C.
Stubbs, it was apparent that the plant was well suited
to the alluvial lands of the Mississippi and Red rivers.
Dr. Stubbs never lost an opportunity to advocate its cul-
ture, and the great progress made in securing its exten-
sive cultivation is largely due to his efforts. Alfalfa is
now extensively grown in the Red river bottoms, and a
very large percentage of the sugar planters grow it for
soiling and for hay for the plantation mules. We get
from four to seven cuttings per year. The average is
about I J'2 tons for the first three cuttings, but less for the
last cuttings. The station one year secured a harvest of
12 tons of cured hay per acre; six tons in a season is a
good yield. Were it not that one or more of these cut-
tings will fall due during a rainy season, when it is diffi-
cult to cure hay, we would go into the business very
extensively in this state. As to the quality of the hay or
forage, there is no question about its place at the head of
the list of desirable forage crops. The sugar planters
find it especially desirable to mix with their cheap mo-
lasses, as the former is rich in protein and the latter rich
in carbohydrates. In the southern portion of the state
best results are secured by planting in the fall. In the
northern portion good results are secured from early
spring planting. We use from 25 to 30 pounds of seed
to the acre. Some planters use more than this. Land

266 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

that is least suited for growing corn in Louisiana, be-
cause of its stiffness, is the very best land for alfalfa.
Where the crop has once been used and the local supply
runs short, it is shipped in from Colorado to supply the
demand. It is selling now for $15 a ton. No better
testimonial need be given of the people's estimate of its
value.

MASSACHUSETTS.

Prof. William P. Brooks, Director Hatch experiment
station. — Our experiments with alfalfa have been con-
tinued both upon our own grounds and those of a few
selected farms in different parts of the state. We are
bringing to bear upon these experiments information in
regard to successful methods from every possible source.
We find in all cases a distinct benefit from a heavy initial
application of lime. We have used from 2,000 to 3,000
pounds per acre. We are enriching soils already natur-
ally good by heavy applications both of manures and fer-
tilizers, using materials which experience has proved best.
We are also giving the soil a most thorough preparatory
tillage. It has usually been fall-plowed, and in addition
it is plowed in the spring, and repeatedly harrowed to
destroy weeds which start in the early part of the season.
We have tried inoculating the soil, both with earth ob-
tained from a field in New York, where alfalfa is suc-
cessfully grown and with the cultures sent out by the
department of agriculture and prepared by private firms.
We have not attained such degree of success as justifies
us in recommending the crop. We have occasionally got
a fair stand of alfalfa, but in all cases the winters prove

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 267

more or less injurious. In the course of a few years the
alfalfa is mostly crowded out by grasses and clovers. The
alfalfa almost every year suffers from leaf spot, which
tends to cut down the yield. We have found a very dis-
tinct benefit from the inoculation with earth from the
New York alfalfa field. We have not found an equally
distinct benefit to follow inoculation with any of the cul-
tures; and, although we are not as yet ready to make a
final report, it should be here remarked that the most
careful experiments on the use of these cultures in steril-
ized soils, under conditions calculated to give accurate
results, indicate that they have little, if any, value. In
our various experiments alfalfa has been tried on a wide
variety of soils. We have had a quarter of an acre field
upon a coarse-textured soil upon a farm in this neigh-
borhood where there is never any standing water within
50 to 60 feet of the surface. Even on this soil the alfalfa,
although it did fairly well for a year, has been injured
by successive winters, until it is at the present time
almost ruined. In this connection I call attention further
to the fact that D. S. Bliss of the department of agricul-
ture, who has been making special efforts to promote the
introduction of alfalfa into New England, and who has
traveled extensively for the purpose of studying the re-
sults obtained, now speaks very discouragingly as to the
outlook in general. In conclusion, while we are not in-
clined to discourage experiments with alfalfa, we do wish
most emphatically to caution against engaging in these
experiments upon an extended scale, for we feel that dis-
appointment is almost inevitable.

268 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

MICHIGAN

Prof. C. D, Smith, Director Michigan experiment
station. — Alfalfa has had and is having a checkered
career. Under favorable conditions it makes a good
stand. Some fields have produced crops for many years,
the ground being occasionally fertilized by manurial salts.
The difficulties that environ the crop are : ( i ) The severe
winters, w^hich sometimes kill off v^hole fields, leaving
scarcely a root alive; this has happened to fields two,
three, or four years old. (2) The Blue grass crowds
it out badly; (3) the ignorance of the farmers in regard
to the requirements of the crop and the consequent im-
perfect preparation of the soil in the matter of tillage or
fertilization, has made it difficult to introduce it in a broad
way. Notwithstanding tliese difficulties and the farther
consideration that alfalfa does not easily lend itself to a
short rotation, the crop is advancing in the state by
leaps and bounds. Hundreds of farmers are experi-
menting with it and are learning how to prepare the
ground, sow it and care for the crop afterwards. Statis-
tics are not at hand to show how many acres of alfalfa
there are in the state, nor can definite figures be given as
to the growth of interest in the crop and its actual acre-
age. When proper strains have been developed, it seems
fair to presume that alfalfa will be one of the staple crops
in Michigan. On the station grounds at the agricultural
college fields of alfalfa have been continuously maintained
from 1897 to 1904. There are fields here sown in 1903
bearing their three crops each year, yielding from 5 to
7 tons of dry hay annually per acre. There has been some
difficulty in getting pure and vigorous seed.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 269

AHNXESOTA

Prof. W. M. Liggett, Director Minnesota experiment
station. — Our experience with alfalfa has extended over
12 or 15 years. In the early days of this station, it was
not very successfully grown. During the past eight or
ten years, however, the changes in soil due to manures
and cultivation and the discovery of several varieties of
alfalfa which appear to be hardy, have made it possible to
grow it successfully in nearly every part of the state. For
the past five years we have cut three crops of alfalfa hay,
yielding from 4 to 5^ tons per acre each year. With the
land properly prepared and some attention given to seed-
ing at the right time, there is no difficulty in growing it
on the state farm. Occasionally it will winterkill. We
were unfortunate enough to have a heavy, driving rain
during March of the present year which froze as it fell
and smothered the alfalfa crop. W^e are not discouraged,
however, as the clover crop in southeastern Minnesota
was killed at the same time and from the same cause. W^e
regard alfalfa just as sure as Red clover. It is sometimes
a little difficult to get a stand under careless methods of
farming. With the land nicely prepared and with a good
supply of humus in such condition that the plant
food is readily available, strong, vigorous growth and a
good stand can be secured during any normal year. We
have alfalfa growing at the northwest sub-station at
Crookston, and in several localities in the northwestern
part of the state, where even clover is not supposed to
grow. The outlook at the present time for this crop is
very bright. Dairymen, swine raisers and sheep men
unite in praising its merits as stock food.

270 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

MISSOURI

Prof. M. F. Miller, Agronomist, Missouri experiment
station. — Alfalfa is being grown with success on various
types of soil, although many soils are not well adapted
to its growth. A knowledge of the peculiarities of the
plant will ultimately make it possible to extend its culture
to most soil types of the state. Liberal manuring is the
key to successful culture on upland soils. The manure
may be applied before plowing and also as frequent top-
dressings. The value of the crop as a feed and its high
yield, where favorable conditions are supplied, make it a
particularly desirable one to grow, at least in small areas,
on farms where mixed f aiming or dairy farming is prac-
ticed. While alfalfa makes a most nutritious pasture
crop, it does not lend itself well to pasturing unless cer-
tain precautions are taken. Where it is grown for hay,
difficulty is often experienced in harvesting the first, and
sometimes other cuttins^s, on account of wet weather. The
silo may be used in such cases. The stiff subsoils of the
state are responsible for most failures reported, because it
requires some knowledge of the methods of handling the
crop to make it succeed under such conditions. Alfalfa
is not adapted to our soils, liming, manuring or drainage
being necessary to prepare such for the crop. If sown on
upland soils that have never grown alfalfa or Sweet
clover, it is benefited by inoculation. On bottom lands or
lands that are very fertile, inoculation has little or no
effect. The surest and often the simplest means of inocu-
lation is by means of inoculated soil. The cultures pre-
pared for seed inoculation have in many cases given ex-
cellent results, but they are still in the experimental stage

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 'Z'Jl

and some skill is required to handle them properly. The
best preparation of the seedbed is that which allows of an
early plowing and the use of a harrow every time a crust
forms or weeds start before time to sow the seed. The
seedbed should be much like that for wheat — loose above
but firm below. The best time to sow in this state is be-
tween the middle of August and the middle of September,
the last week in August usually giving best results. The
amount of seed to sow is between 15 and 20 pounds, de-
pending upon the quality and the character of the soil.
It is best sown without a nurse crop. It must be clipped
frequently the first and sometimes the second season, es-
pecially on soils to which it is not well adapted. It should
usually be cut when the lower leaves begin to turn yellow.

MONTANA

Alfred Rasicot, Deer Lodge county. — Alfalfa is the
most valuable crop that is raised in Idaho or Utah for
hay, growing on any kind of land but that which is low
and wet, yielding five to seven tons of hay to the acre,
and providing excellent feed for all kinds of farm ani-
mals. For about 20 years I have grown from 20 to 50
acres on second bottom and upland of heavy clay soil,
with gravel below and water at a depth varying from 16
to 100 feet on different localities. We irrigate from
streams, flooding the land and turning the water off as
soon as the land has been all covered, applying once for
the first cutting and twice for each succeeding cutting,
whenever the ground is dry. The first year on new land
requires fully one-third more water than is needed after-
ward. Before seeding, the ground should be mellow,

272 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

then harrowed with the back part of the harrow or
brushed, and seeded with 15 to 20 pounds to the acre,
between the first and middle of April. The plant will
usually run out the weeds, and on that account no special
treatment is needed. The first season will produce a small
crop of hay, but no good seed. Unless water is allowed
to freeze on the land, alfalfa does not winterkill here,
and at two or three years of age it is at its best, continu-
ing vigorous for 10, 20 or 30 years without seeding.
The first cutting of the season yields about 2^/^ to 3 tons
to the acre, the second about 2 to 2^<, and the third i to
i)^ tons. The hay is cut when the plant has been in
bloom 8 or 10 days, allowed to lie for 24 to 36 hours,
and treated as Red clover is. The second crop is always
the best for seed here. The cost in the stack, on $25
land, irrigation costing 50 to 75 cents an acre, is $2 a ton.
To put this into 100-pound bales costs $2.50 a ton. On
the ground it sells for $3 to $5 a ton, while the seed
brings $3, $4 and $5 a bushel. An ordinary yield of
seed is 300 pounds to the acre, and this is threshed with
the same machine used for grain, at a cost of about one-
fourth of the seed. The straw is worth about one-fourth
as much as the hay. We consider alfalfa hay, for cattle,
sheep, and hogs, far superior to clover, but for horses
timothy is best. It will keep steers and sheep fat all win-
ter, providing they are under shelter, and is excellent for
milch cows. The pasture for swine and cattle is far bet-
ter than clover, and for work horses and sheep it is good,
but not the best for horses that are driven fast. Cattle
will bloat about as they do on Red clover when turned
onto it after rain, dew, or frost. To rid land of a stand

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 273

of alfalfa is very difficult, requiring four stout horses
with a very sharp plow to turn it over, but as a green
manure it has about the same effect as Red clover, pro-
ducing two or three extra crops afterwards.

NEBRASKA

Olmstead & Olmstead, Furnas county. — Alfalfa, while
excellent for all other stock, is preeminently the feed for
hogs. Its early appearance, its wonderfully rapid growth,
its nutritious properties, its perennial nature (keeping
green until about December), its resistance to drouth,
its wonderful fecundity, and, lastly, its adaptability as
a dry feed, make it, in our opinion, the most profitable
crop that can be grown. Tesi acres of alfalfa will
pasture 150 head of hogs, and give them abundance.
From the 15th of March, or at most not later than the
15th of April, hogs and cattle can be turned on pasture,
and kept there until snow flies. On first bottoms, six
tons per acre can be depended upon as a fair, average
yield, while many fields this year have made as high as
eight. On divide, or high land, where it has been tested
for three years, it averages about two to four tons per
acre, but this land gives the best returns for seed, not
growing too rank. Since we have been investigating
and gathering information on this subject, we have had
reported to us a yield as high as eight bushels of seed
per acre, and quite a number as high as nine, and some
eleven. Six bushels an acre on a good stand is an average
yield, while some will fall below that. The seed has
never sold here below $4 per bushel. Last year and this,
all seed grown in this part of the country sold readily at

274 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA*

$5 per bushel, and for the next five years will probably
not go lower than $3. One crop of seed and two of hay
are the average on low land, and one crop less of hay
on high land. The threshed hay is nearly as good for
feed as the unthreshed. There is no waste in feeding this
hay, and horses are especially fond of the coarse stems.
It stands our winters remarkably well, so far, coming
through in excellent condition. There is no stock but eats
alfalfa hay as well or better than clover or timothy.
Young colts and calves will winter in fine condition on
this hay, with little or no grain. If the last cutting is
allowed to stand, with a growth from six to eight inches,
horses and cattle will graze on it through the winter, the
same as on Red clover, doing equally as well. Now, as
to the other side. Will this clover grow in all latitudes
and longitudes as well as Red clover? We think it
doubtful. It requires a dry, porous soil, in which there
is no hardpan nor too much clay, and it does not like too
much water. It does well where the soil is somewhat
sandy, its roots penetrating to a depth of from 15 to 25
feet, thus drawing its nutrition from various strata of
soil. What else against it ? If cattle are turned on after
a rain, when it is wet, or dew is on, they often bloat and
die; but if turned on in the spring, and kept on continu-
ously, have little danger of gorging themselves or bloat-
ing. No other stock is adversely affected by it. This is
all that can be honestly said against alfalfa, and this is
obviated by a little care by the farmer, while the many
good things said about it must certainly recommend it to
the intelligent husbandman. Thus we can enumerate:
First, its certainty as a crop ; second, its enormous yield ;

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 275

third, its excellent pasturage qualities; fourth, its nutri-
tious qualities, being equally good green or dry; fifth,
its yield and price of seed, which is threshed with an
ordinary grain separator; sixth, its tremendously rapid
growth during the summer season. There are many more
attributes that can be credited to alfalfa.

W. 0. Thompson, Lincoln county. — I have had 20
years' experience with alfalfa, on second bottom and
upland. The upland has a clay subsoil; the second bot-
tom soil is three feet deep, underlaid with a bed of
sand and gravel. Abundant water is found from 8 to
23 feet from the surface. If dry soil is found, it is the
first three feet below the surface. Land should be tilled
several years before seeding, in order to perfectly subdue
the sod. Use about 16 pounds of seed per acre, and pre-
pare the ground the same as for wheat, sowing in the
spring. The first crop will be nearly all weeds ; cut and
haul these off the ground. The second crop will produce
about one ton of hay per acre. Alfalfa is liable to win-
terkill if the winter is warm and dry. I irrigate from a
stream two or three times during the season, with suffi-
cient water to flood all the ground. The first year the
ground is soft and porous, and twice the water is required
as in the following years. From three to four crops are
raised during the season, yielding from ij4 to 2 tons
each cutting, or from five to six tons per acre in one sea-
son. Cut when in bloom for hay, and let the seed ripen
before cutting for seed, using either the first or second
crop for this seed. When cutting for seed, it should be
pitched out of the way of the mower after each round;
then let it dry before stacking, but not enough for the

2/6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

leaves to fail off when handled. Stack in the ordinary
way, but be sure the hay is thoroughly dry in the shock
before stacking. It is more liable to get moldy in the
barn than in the stack. About $2 per ton will cover all
expenses of raising, on land worth $50 per acre. The
expense of baling is about $1.50 per ton, 100-pound bales
being preferred. It should not be baled until perfectly
dry in the stack. About six bushels per acre is the aver-
age yield of seed, and it costs about 75 cents per bushel
to thresh and clean. A clover huller is the most satis-
factory for threshing alfalfa. The hay has sold here at
$3 to $10 per ton, averaging $6. The seed has brought
from $3 to $10 per bushel averaging $5. One acre of
alfalfa will raise 35 hogs, with the aid of a little grain.
Horses thrive on it, but it is tmsafe for sheep and cattle.
Animals which chew the cud will bloat if pastured on
alfalfa. The only way to prevent it is to keep them from
the pasture. The best way to cure it is to insert a tube
into the paunch, to allow the gas to escape. As to the
longevity of the plant, I call to mind a patch sown in
1873, on upland, and it is still growing. Alfalfa attains
its best growth in about two years. I do not think it can
be profitably raised on high, arid ground, without irriga-
tion. Hogs can be wintered on alfalfa hay and a very
little grain, and cattle can be fattened for the home mar-
ket, but it produces softer flesh, and they could not be
shipped a great distance in the best condition.

Richard Stolley, Hall county. — In reading the farm
papers I see many articles about seeding alfalfa, but have
failed to see anything in the line of advice regarding a
sure way to kill it, if it has to be done. We have had

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 2/7

alfalfa on our place as long as I can remember — nearly
thirty years. At first it was a small piece, just for exper-
iment's sake. Finally we sowed about nine acres on good
soil and had it well manured before sowing. The result
was immense crops, as high as four cuttings ; and, really,
the worst feature was to harvest the crop so often, since
it came just as regularly as clock-work. It actually stood
in the way of alfalfa, for I asked one of our neighbors,
who had very little hay, why he did not sow alfalfa, and
all he could answer was : ''Well, I have to harvest it too
often and I haven't the time to do it."

We did not sow more of it until we got more improved
methods of handling it, and we have had as high as fifty
to sixty acres on a i6o-acre farm here at home. Some
fields run out in about ten years. Our plan is to then
plow it up. The first thing you learn is to have a very
sharp plow, and it must have a strong cutter bolted to the
share, being long enough to reach well through the sod.
Then if you have three good horses you are fixed out.
A riding plow that we tried w^as thrown out too easily
or pulled too hard. Others had the same experience, and
the old reliable fourteen or sixteen-inch walking plow
fills the bill best. We plowed some of it quite early in
the spring and after harvesting the oats we had a won-
derful stand on the field in the fall. All the inconven-
ience the clover had was to take a little time to start work
at the crown and start sprout at the other end; that is
the root end.

I do not know of any other plant that is not a weed
that has this peculiarity. Planting corn on alfalfa sod
cannot work well, because the roots are so tough that no

2yS THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

cultivator will be able to cut them, and since burning does
not make any difference, it only has a tendency to start
roots and sprouts at both ends at the same time. This is,
of course, only possible In a wet year. Now, we tried
late plowing- in the spring; that is, let the clover get up
to about six or eight inches. We had a chain on the plow
and disked and harrowed it well, and to kill it sure, put in
millet to smother it. We intended to raise seed from
the millet, but the crop got too heavy and we cut it for
hay. After putting it up I saw very little alfalfa signs
and went home contented that all was dead.

Some nice rains came on and soon I noticed from our
house, since I did not go to that corner of the farm
in between, that all of it was green again, and sure
enough, there was a comparatively good stand and the
sprouts showed quite a bit of vigor. This surprised me.
I had no time to plow right away and having a large
harvest of bottom hay, I did not go to the field for three
weeks, and when I saw it again it was just about ready
to cut. I actually did cut and harvest it and it was well
worth the time it took us to do the work. The next
plowing and disking, of course, thinned it out, and espe-
cially as dry weather came just right to assist in killing it.

All this made it clear to my mind that we did not find
the right time to plow alfalfa, so the next time I tried
it still later; in fact, it was almost in bloom, and, being
a wet year, there was little difference in the result. This
year I waited the second time for the alfalfa to come up
a foot high before plowing it back and drilled in sweet
corn, and now T can hardly see any difference on parrs
of the field.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 279

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Prof. Frederick W. Taylor, Agriculturist New Hamp-
shire experiment station. — We have tried to secure a
stand of alfalfa for four consecutive seasons, but so far
our efforts have been unsuccessful. Various types of soil,
from a heavy boulder clay to a light sandy loam, have
been tried, and, contrary to our expectations, the most
promising crop was on the heavy clay soil. Our chief
difficulty has been in having the alfalfa keep ahead of the
weeds and in getting a uniform catch that would with-
stand our winters. From one-fourth to one-half of the
plants have usually wintered over in good condition and
made a vigorous growth the next season, but there has
not been enough of them to say that we have made a
success with alfalfa. We have largely eliminated the seed
question by plowing the ground early and keeping it har-
rowed until about the middle of July, when it is sown.
Our experience seems to indicate that an application of
lime is beneficial, if not absolutely necessary, in this sec-
tion and we have accordingly been using it at the rate of
a ton to the acre. We have also tried inoculation with
the various cultures, but in no case have any benefits been
observed. So far as we know, there have been no suc-
cessful attempts to grow alfalfa on a medium or large
scale in this state, although several farmers in the Con-
necticut river valley have reported success on some areas
of an acre or less. When we more thoroughly under-
stand the plant, and the conditions necessary for its
growth, we believe it can be grown upon some of our
soils.

28o THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

NEW JERSEY

Dr. E. B. Voorhees, Director New Jersey experiment
station. — The farmers of the state have manifested much
interest in the growing of alfalfa, and many experimen-
tal plots have been seeded in the past two or three years.
In order to obtain accurate information as to the methods
employed, and the results obtained, a circular letter was
sent out during the past summer to 140 growers. De-
tailed replies were obtained from loi growers. Of these
there were 57 distributed over 15 counties, which showed
the successful establishment of the crop. The soils upon
which these successful crops are growing vary widely,
both in their physical and chemical character, ranging
from a light, sandy loam, with sandy subsoil, to a medium
heavy clay, with compact clay subsoil, which indicates
clearly that success does not depend so much upon the
character of the soil as upon the methods of seeding,
fertilization and after-treatment, though the most suc-
cessful stands were, as a rule, obtained upon sandy soils,
overlying a reasonably open subsoil. Twenty-seven
growers had a more or less satisfactory experience, while
17 were absolute failures. A study of the reports of
failures shows that in most instances they were due to
lack of observation of the methods recommended for the
seeding and care of the crop, which experience at the
station showed to be essential for success. In most
cases the land was imperfectly prepared; in many an
insufficient amount of fertilizer or manure was applied.
In many cases, too little seed was used ; in others the date
of seeding was contrary to all recommendations, or the
crop was not clipped often, and thus choked out by weeds.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 28 1

In many instances, where lime had not been used for
many years, none was applied at the time of seeding. In
the case of those having more or less success, the recom-
mendations were not fully observed or soil conditions
were imperfect.

D. C. Lewis of Middlesex county, in the summer of
1903 seeded about ij4 acres with alfalfa, observing
closely all of the recommendations of the experiment sta-
tion in reference to seeding, but did not inoculate the soil.
The seed germinated well, and the crop grew nicely dur-
ing the fall, but entirely disappeared later. In 1904, the
same area, after an oat crop was grown, was seeded
again, on August 10. The soil is a clay loam, with a
clay subsoil, and in a good state of fertility. The land
had been previously in grass and corn. The corn was
manured and the alfalfa area well limed previous to seed-
ing in 1903. The seed was at the rate of about 25
pounds, and at time of seeding 800 pounds of Mapes'
fertilizer and an extra bag of high-grade sulphate of
potash were applied, and the field was inoculated with
about 300 pounds of soil, taken from the old alfalfa
patch at the experiment station. The seed germinated
well, and made a rapid and large fall growth and passed
the winter successfully. The yield per acre was about
three tons of hay for the first cutting. This experiment
is strikingly suggestive in showing the importance of soil
inoculation, for while inoculation is not apparently essen-
tial in all cases, it would seem that where soils have
not been heavily manured that this point should be care-
fully observed.

282 ^HE BOOK OF ALFALFA

J. P. Nelson of Monmouth county has had a very suc-
cessful experience in the growth of alfalfa, since he has
observed all of the recommendations made as to methods
of seeding and after-treatment. The following is a de-
scription of his method and the results obtained from a
seeding made August 10, 1904. The surface soil is a
medium clay loam, underlaid with a gravelly clay subsoil.
The crops preceding were grass and corn, and the ma-
nures used were barnyard manure and 600 pounds per
acre of ground bone. The corn preceding the alfalfa
was limed at the rate of 1,000 pounds per acre, and 1,400
pounds per acre were applied just previous to the seed-
ing of alfalfa. Thirty pounds of seed were used per acre,
and lightly harrowed in and the land rolled. The ger-
mination and early growth were good, and the first crop
was harvested June i, 1905. The yield was two big,
two-horse loads of cured hay per acre.

E. T. Gill of Camden county has a sandy loam, under-
laid by a subsoil varying from sand to clay. He has an
area of 24 acres, ranging from two to six years in age.
The first seeding of about two acres is still growing
profitable crops, though not uniform in stand. The later
seedings show an excellent stand and large and profitable
crops are annually harvested. Usually four cuts are
made each year, which are used both for soiling and for
hay, with splendid results. The practice on this farm
is to top-dress with manure during the winter at the
rate of about eight tons per acre. Mr. Gill's experience
leads him to believe that the stand is often injured, par-
ticularly during the first year, by allowing the crop to
reach too great maturity and then cutting when the plants

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 283

are just beginning to bloom, and leaving a stubble of at
least three inches. Mr. Gill did not inoculate the seed
or soil at his first seeding, but did follow this practice
with recent seedings, and believes it to be a wise precau-
tion, especially on soils that have not been previously
heavily manured.

NEW IMEXICO

Thomas J. Clark, Grant county. — I have had 15 years*
experience with alfalfa on first and second bottom land
with gravel soil, dry to within four feet of water, which
is reached at a depth of 15 feet. I irrigate from the Gila
river, and my alfalfa, which is 14 years old, is as good
to-day as at any time since it was sown. The seed is
sown as turnip seed is. I plow the land thoroughly, har-
row it over smoothly, then sow the seed in March, and
harrow lightly once. Then the water is turned on, and
the ground will remain moist until the seeds sprout.
After the alfalfa is six inches high, I cut it to make it
spread and destroy all the large weeds ; and there may be
two cuttings of hay that same season. Water will not
injure the plant unless it stands on it in low places. Stag-
nant water standing on the plant, or mineral water so
near the surface that the roots reach it, will kill the
plant, but it is not liable to injury from winter frost.
After the first season there are three or four crops, the
first being usually chosen for seed and not irrigated. For
hay it is cut when in full bloom, and, if the sun is shining,
should cure 24 hours if in June, or 20 in July or August,
before raking, and then 30 hours in the cock. It must
be thoroughly cured before stacking, and then will not

284 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

mold. The most convenient bales weigh 90 to 100
pounds, and the cost of preparing them is $2 a ton. The
total cost of hay in the stack is about $3 a ton, and the
average yield about three tons to the acre each year.
When the burs turn brown the seed is harvested, and
when well cured should be stacked in a dry place. An
average yield is 500 to 600 pounds to the acre, and it
sells for $4 a bushel. The hay makes excellent feed for
farm animals, keeping them in good condition the year
around without grain. The alfalfa pasturage is better
for swine and cattle than clover, and yields more largely ;
sheep may be kept on it to advantage also. A good acre
will keep five grown hogs in excellent condition, but will
not make them fat. If they are taken up in October and
fed about 40 days on grain, they will be marketable.
Cattle on the pasture sometimes bloat, but I have had
100 head of cows and calves on mine for two months,
and have had no trouble. The irrigated alfalfa is better
than that grown on land that requires no water. The
straw is about equal 10 oat straw, but not half so good
as the alfalfa hay. To rid land of the plant requires a
strong team and a sharp lo-inch plow. The roots rot at
once after plowing, and the land is well fertilized for
other crops. In my opinion, alfalfa is the best forage
plant known in this western country. It is most easily
raised, produces the largest yield, commands the best
price, and can be planted at any time from March to
September. Land seeded to it is the most valuable, and
the farmer who has plenty of it is the most prosperous.
Farming here cannot be a success without it, and I take
pleasure in recommending it to my brother farmers. It

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 285

will lie dormant all summer if it is dry, and with fall
rains revive and make good pasture. It is the earliest
plant up in the spring, and the last to stay green in the
fall. In other words, it is the best of all.

Hartman & Weil, San Miguel county. — We have been
dealers ni alfalfa hay for eight years, and have some
small fields of our own. This is on both bottom and
upland. In the bottom, the subsoil is sand and bowlders ;
on the upland, stiff bluish clay, and in some places blue
limestone. W^ell water is reached on the bottom land at
a depth of 8 to lo feet, through soil moist all the way;
on the upland, it is necessary to dig 60 to 100 feet, and,
beginning two or four feet from the surface, the ground
is dry. When seed is planted in the spring, the soil
should be well pulverized, moist, and warm, that the seed
may germinate quickly. It should not be put m deeper
than 1)4 inches, and may be planted in May or June, or
any time in the spring after the soil becomes warm. In
our climate, it is best to sow about 30 pounds of good
seed to the acre, besides just enough oats to shade the
ground and protect the young alfalfa from the hot sun.
Once well started, it will kill out all weeds, and does not
winterkill here. We irrigate from streams. Alfalfa
should not be irrigated when quite young, for, if the
small plant is covered with soil, when watered, it will
not come up again, but, after it gets a good start, it is
not easily killed. There should be about two irrigations
to each crop harvested, or ordinarily, six in a season.
The heavier the stand the more water is needed. We
have three cuttings, yielding about 3,000 pounds of cured
hay per acre per cutting. When the plant is fairly well

286 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

in bloom, it is cut, and is best when cured under large
sheds or in the shade. If left until dry where cut, the
foliage will fall off and pulverize. It is best to stack in
narrow ricks, as it is liable to heat if put in large stacks,
and it should be salted liberally when stacked. The last
cutting is preferred for seed, which is mowed when most
of the pods are well matured ; in this case only two crops
should be cut during the year. The straw makes good
feed for stock in winter, having about half the value of
the hay. Each irrigation costs about 50 cents per acre,
and the total cost of hay m the stack is about $3.50 per
ton. Baling costs $1.25 per ton, with 50 cents additional
for wire. The common yield of seed is 6 to 10 bushels
from the acre. ''Reeves" clover huller will thresh about
12 bushels per hour. The price of hay, baled, in New
Mexico has averaged about $8 per ton for the past eight
years and seed for the same time about $5 per bushel.
Our experience indicates that alfalfa hay is a more nutri-
tious food for farm animals than either clover or timo-
thy. We have found nothing better to feed cattle for
market; it makes good, solid beef, and they take on fat
very fast. The pasturage is excellent for swine, horses,
and cattle. If overfed, animals will sometimes bloat on
raniv ?lfalfa, especially if unaccustomed to it. About the
t'-jird year from seeding, the plant has acquired its best
yield. It is difficult to rid land of it, as plowing under
is sometimes beneficial, making it come up thicker than
before. Success with it on high prairies depends upon
the precipitation during the growing season. We think
four inches of rainfall during the time of its growth

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 2'6'J

would make a fair crop of hay; or 8 to 12 inches from
May to September, for two or three cuttings.

NEW YORK

Isaac Zollcr, Montgomery county, writes in a recent
article in American Agriculturist: — *'In the spring of
1889, I sowed my first ten acres of alfalfa. The field was
reseeded for the second time in April, 1905. I now have
25 acres. The land was plowed in the fall after being
manured. In the spring, generally during the last two
weeks of April, the surface for five or six inches is made
extra fine and 25 to 30 pounds of the best seed are sown
with three pecks of oats as a nurse crop. By June i the
oats are cut three inches above ground and again every
four weeks during the first season. The following June
during the third week the first crop is cut, usually yield-
ing about three tons. The second cutting generally
comes during the last week in July when i^ tons is an
average. By September, the third cutting is made, but
I generally let sheep browse it, but not very close or after
it is frozen. The season of 1905 it was cut and allowed
to wilt, raked with a side delivery rake, allowed to lie a
couple of hours, then rolled over with the rake and drawn
to the barn. Formerly I used to shock it and allow it to
sweat, but this is too much work. I feed it to sheep and
find it equal, if not superior to Red clover. To be at its
best it must be cut when about one-tenth of the blossoms
are out. The soil in which my alfalfa grows is a heavy,
clay loam and rolling, but is underdrained. The soil here
is apt to heave three or four inches during winter and
injure clover. But where properly drained, this does

288 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

not occur on alfalfa fields. I am certain alfalfa can be
more extenvsively and economically grown here."

H. B. Fullerton, Long Island. — As an experiment, an
acre of scrub-oak, waste land was cleared and the brush
and stumps burned in November, 1905. About 2,000
pounds of wood ashes were applied and turned under at
once. In April about ten tons of manure was applied
so that each quarter acre would have about 2,500 pounds.
Three weeks later 400 pounds of kainit were applied and
ten days later 200 pounds of Canada wood ashes. Since
the soil, when tested, still showed acidity, about 400
pounds more of ashes were spread, chiefly because of its
high percentage of vegetable lime, 40 per cent. The lime
of ashes on Long Island soils is considered superior to
that of stone or shells. Early in June the test acre,
being considered ready, was finally prepared and sown
to alfalfa in two directions crosswise over each quarter
acre. In less than a week the plants appeared evenly on
all four plots. Showery weather continued from before
seeding until well into June. One of the quarter acre
plots sown with a dressing of 150 pounds of soil from
an old alfalfa field at Fayetteville, N. Y., early took
the lead in color and vigor and about six weeks from
sowing could be readily distinguished at a distance by
the richness of its foliage. It was also in flower before
the other plots, one of which was uninoculated, the other
two sown with inoculated seed. Unfavorable weather
prevented cutting until mid-August when all four plots
were cut, the few large weeds were removed and the
alfalfa weighed. The plot inoculated with alfalfa soil
yielded 1673 green pounds which cured to 701 dry; the

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Sweet Clover (Melilotus alba.)

The seed of Sweet clover is an occasional adulterant of alfalfa. The plant is

much taller than any of the species of Medicago. The flowers are white

and borne in rows on elongated flower stems

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Yellow Trefoil (Medicago Inpnlina.)

A coiiiiiioii adulterant of alfalfa. The leaflets are broader and more clover-like

than alfalfa. I'bc flowers are yellow and sparsely scattered in small,

hop-like clusters at tips of long flower stems

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 289

uninoculated plot yielded 726 green and 313 dry, the
other two plots sown with inoculated seed 416 and 377
pounds green or 189 and 168 pounds dry respectively.
These results point favorably to inoculating the soil from
old alfalfa fields

NORTH CAROLINA

Dr, B. IV. Kilgore, Director North Carolina experi-
ment station. — Alfalfa has been grown in a small way in
this state, particularly in the section around ''Hillsboro,
for 75 to 100 years. The soil there has become well
inoculated and there are some small areas of good alfalfa
grown there. There has been for a number of years past
considerable interest in the production of this crop, but
its cultivation has not been very successful. On our ex-
periment farms in different sections of the state it has
done reasonably well, and there have been put out quite
a large number of small areas during the last few years,
which give hopes of success w^th the crop. When some
further details regarding the time and method for seeding
and treatment, especially to prevent crab grass and weeds
from getting the upper hand of the crop during the
summer have been worked out, we believe that alfalfa
will be grown to quite a large extent and be a most valu-
able addition to our present forage crops.

NORTH DAKOTA

Trof. J. H. Shepperd, Dean of the North Dakota Agri-
cultural college. — Alfalfa has not been given a thorough
trial by the people of North Dakota, but the results
secured by the experiment station indicate that it is

290 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

capable of producing paying crops here. It will yield two
or more tons of hay per acre annually and will, when
sown on well drained land, continue to live from year to
year as it does in old alfalfa districts. A little growth
should be allowed to stand through the winter season to
protect the roots by catching a covering of snow over
the entire field. Our people are thoroughly awakened
and encouraged by the results secured at the experiment
station, and its growth is likely to soon be a common
practice in the state.

OHIO

Prof. Charles E. Thome, Director Ohio experiment
station. — Numerous attempts were made during the lat-
ter half of the nineteenth century to grow alfalfa in Ohio,
but so far as the knowledge of the writer goes, that of
Joseph E. Wing of Mechanicsburg was the first that
could be pronounced a decided success. Mr. Wing had
seen the plant growing in the arid region of the West,
and was fortunately able to make his initial experiments on
the soil formed from the decomposing limestone gravels
of Champaign county, a soil possessing three of the in-
dispensable requisites for alfalfa culture. Plenty of lime,
plenty of humus and good drainage. Other farmers
during recent years have attempted the culture of this
plant, and where experiments have been conducted upon
suitable soils and carried out with sufficient care and per-
sistence, they have been successful. Thus far the most
promising alfalfa fields in the state are to be found either
in such localities as those of Mr. Wing, namely upon the
soils underlaid with limestone gravel which are found

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 29 1

over the western half of the state, or upon such of the
river bottom lands of the state as are above overflow and
are underlaid with gravel, giving natural drainage. The
experience of Ohio growers of alfalfa has demonstrated
the following points: (i) Alfalfa must have lime. If
the soil is naturally deficient in this substance it must be
added artificially. (2) Alfalfa must have humus. It
is idle to attempt to grow It upon a soil which has been
worn so thin that it will not grow a good crop of corn,
^uch soils must be manured before they will successfully
produce alfalfa. In this respect it is very different from
the plant which it so closely resembles in habit of growth,
Sweet clover. (3) Alfalfa will not grow with wet feet,
yet it is a great consumer of water, and the soil must be
of such a character as to hold large stores of water with-
out being water logged. Hence the value of bottom
lands naturally underdrained by strata of gravel a few
feet below the surface. (4) When lime, humus and
drainage are supplied, the bacterial organisms through
which atmospheric nitrogen is assimilated will gradually
appear upon the alfalfa roots, but their growth may be
hastened by inoculating the land with soil from a field
in which alfalfa or Sweet clover has previously grown.
The experiment station has been most successful in get-
ting a stand of alfalfa where the land was thoroughly
prepared m the spring and then harrowed every week or
ten days until July or August. The seed was then sown
and harrowed In. By this means the weed seeds were
germinated and destroyed before the alfalfa was sown.

292 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

OKLAHOMA

Agricultural experiment station: Bui. 71, by Prof. F.
C. Burtis and L. A. Moorhouse. — This crop is being
grown in every county in Oklahoma and in some sec-
tions, a fair acreage is present. From many fields as
large yields are obtained as are produced any place else
in the United States without irrigation. On the uplands
in Oklahoma, as elsewhere, the returns vary. Where the
subsoil is hard and impervious, the yields are quite mea-
ger under unfavorable climatic conditions and the crop
needs considerable nursing such as disking and har-
rowing, to keep the crab grass from taking the field in
a few years. On these upland soils with the hardpan
subsoils which grow cowpeas to perfection, the farmer
who is not willing to inform himself about proper
methods and to give his alfalfa fields much attention
and care, should grow cowpeas instead. But as has been
indicated before, alfalfa is being grown on such soil
successfully and profitably, but only in small areas.

The soil of the experiment station farm at Stillwater,
on which the following yields of alfalfa were obtained
is a clay loam underlaid by a verv stiff, impervious sub-
soil of a hardpan nature.

Yields of Field F, containing about four acres; cured
hay for the season.

1 902- 1. 76 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

1 904- 1. 23 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

1904-3. 13 tons hay per acre in 4 cuttings.

1905-3. 13 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

Average for four years, 2.31 tons of hay per acre.

In the spring of 1904 the field received an applica-

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 293

tion of barnyard manure at the rate of 15 tons per acre.
Every season, the field was disked from three to four
times and harrowed. During 1903 and 1904, web worms
damaged the crop.

Yields of Plats i, 2, 3, and 4, Field E. The plats are
on similar soil to that of Field F and have been handled
about the same as that iield. The yield is given for all
the plats together.

1902-2.67 tons hay per acre.

1903-3.27 tons hay per acre.

1904-3.3 1 tons hay per acre.

Average for three years, 3.08 tons of hay per acre.

Yield of Field H, containing about five acres:

1902-4.20 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

1903-2.88 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

1904-2. 12 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

1905-2.27 tons hay per acre in 5 cuttings.

Average for four years 2.69 tons per acre.

Barnyard manure was applied to this field in i900-'oi,
and it was given the same treatment as was received by
the fields previously mentioned. Other results will be
given in a later bulletin, but those cited give a fair idea
of what may be expected on upland where the subsoil
is a hardpan. The hay from all the fields mentioned
above, obtained in the last two or three cuttings, con-
tained varying amounts of crab grass, so the yields given
are not all alfalfa. Since the above results were obtained,
some good bottom land has been acquired by the experi-
ment station and alfalfa has already been seeded on some
of it. In a few years, yields that will look better when
compared with those of our best alfalfa growers can

294 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

probably be reported. The following summary will be
helpful.

1. Alfalfa is a great and valuable crop for Okla-
homa, where there are as good alfalfa soils as are found
in the world and as good yields are produced as any-
where.

2. The acreage of alfalfa should be greatly increased
in Oklahoma. There are but few farms here that do not
contain a few acres at least that will grow the crop
profitably.

3. Select the best soil on the farm for the first trial,
and try only a few acres at first.

4. Decide a year or two in advance of seeding time
what field is to be seeded to alfalfa, and follow the best
methods of cropping and preparation known.

5. Buy only the very best seed. Get a sample and
test it before buying and purchase your seed a year
before you expect to sow it unless you are sure you can
get good seed just when you want it.

6. Twenty pounds of good seed to the acre is plenty
and as low as twelve pounds is all that is used by many.

7. Seed either with the drill or by broadcasting.
Conditions must be right for either to succeed.

8. Fall seeding and spring seeding are both followed
in Oklahoma with good success. If the conditions are
not right at seeding time, or turn out unfavorable after
seeding, or while the plants are small, either may fail.

9. As a rule fall seeding is preferable in Oklahoma,
particularly on the less adapted soils.

10. Take due care in harvesting the hay that half its
value is not lost at that time.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 29g

II. Don't give up trying to raise the crop because you
fail in your first attempt or even if the failure continues
to the second and third attempts. Successful alfalfa rais-
ers have stated that in instances they have failed as many
as five times in getting certain fields started to alfalfa,
and after they did get the field seeded, the returns from
it would justify reseeding ten times if necessary.

OREGOX

George W. Dunn, Jackson county. — For eight years I
have grown 60 acres of alfalfa on bottom land with
granite loam soil, gravelly and sandy. The plant does
not grow well unless the soil is deep and well drained,
and will not grow where there is a clay subsoil or stag-
nant water. Well water is reached at a depth of 10 to 12
feet, and the soil, unless cultivated or irrigated, becomes
dry and hard in the summer. As soon as the heavy frosts
in the spring are over, seed may be put in, after
thorough, deep plowing and pulverizing. I always sow
broadcast, 20 to 25 pounds to the acre, then harrow in
and clod-mash or roll. Water for irrigation is obtained
from streams, and it should be applied as quickly as pos-
sible, the best way being to flood the whole field for a few
days, and then take all the water off, as standing water
will kill the plant quicker than anything else. The quan-
tity of water needed the first and later years does not
seem to differ materially. As soon as the young alfalfa
is high enough, it should be mowed. This kills the weeds,
and gives better chance for growth. Then I cut for hay,
but it does not pay much the first year. If land is well
drained, the plant lives through the winter easily, and by

2.(p THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

the second or third year is at its best. In ground adapted
to its growth, it is ahiiost everlasting, unless killed by
gophers or hogs. After the first season, there are three
or four cuttings, averagnig each from one to three tons
to the acre. For hay, I cut as soon as it begins to bloom
freely, ordinarily raking the next day, and cocking the
third, in this dry atmosphere. The stack does not shed
water well, and the best plan is to put in a good barn.
The hay bales well, and the size of bale is simply a matter
of opinion or convenience, there being no difference in
the keeping quality. The second crop is the one for seed,
as the first always contams more or less foul stuff, and
the third will not mature seed. I dispose of hay at from
$4 to $ ID a ton — the same price as other hay in the same
market — and it is in great demand for milch cows. The
seed costs me from lo to i6 cents a pound. The straw
makes good feed, but of course is not so good as the
hay. For feeding farm animals, alfalfa is superior to
clover or timothy. We produce as fine beef here, by
feeding alfalfa alone, as can be done in Kansas or else-
where by feeding ordinary hay and corn. The pasturage
is profitable and satisfactory for horses and sheep, and
for hogs it is unsurpassed — they will grow and fatten on
it without other food. Cattle on the pasture sometimes
bloat, but not when they are used to it, or when it is dry.
I keep about 150 head, and in eight years have lost but
two. The roots will grow to, but not into, water, and
thrive in deep gravelly or sandy soil. The plant sends
down a large, straight taproot, which, as it approaches
water, branches and spreads out into numerous small
rootlets.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 297

PENNSYLVANIA

Prof. George C. Watson, Pennsylvania experiment
station. — The experiment station has received many let-
ters requesting information pertaining to the growth and
cuhivation of alfalfa. From these communications it
has been learned that many farmers have attempted to
grow alfalfa on land that is not at all well suited for this
purpose, and consequently, many failures have resulted.
The first attempts to grow alfalfa were made wholly by
spring seeding, which, in most instances, has proved quite
unsatisfactory. As alfalfa starts slowly and exists as a
small plant for a considerable length of time, the weeds
have an abundant opportunity to germinate and outgrow
the more delicate alfalfa plants. Whatever conditions
favor the growth of weeds, particularly in the early part
of the growing season, materially increase the risk of
failure with alfalfa. Largely on account of the weeds and
grass, late in summer or fall seeding has been most sat-
isfactory. While a drouth at this time may seriously
interfere with germination, yet the injury from insuffi-
cient moisture is not likely to be so great as that from a
rank grow^th of weeds earlier in the season. Land that
has been cultivated for a few weeks during the summer
may be sown to alfalfa in August or September with
comparatively little danger from annual weeds, which
are so troublesome in spx-ing seeding. Land that is in-
fested with noxious perennial weeds and grass would not,
of course, be in suitable condition for seeding after a
few weeks of cultivation, no matter how thorough it
may be. The most tenacious grasses and weeds, like
Canada thistles and quack grass, should be given at least

298 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

a few months of thorough cultivation before seeding.
Experiments indicate that alfalfa will not survive con-
tinued alternate freezing and thawing if the soil contains
very much moisture. Land that is at all inclined to
*'heave" is not suited for the growth of this crop. The
soil of the station farm, upon which most of these exper-
iments have been made, is a porous limestone clay
underlaid with limestone rocks which afford abundant
drainage through the fissures. Notwithstanding the fact
that the soil is naturally well drained, in some places it
seems to hold too much water to affcrd a most congenial
home for alfalfa. This crop will endure severe freezing,
provided the soil is sufficiently dry so that it has no
tendency to "heave." Land upon which clover will
"heave" undoubtedly contains too much moisture for
alfalfa. It seems to be able to endure the rigors of win-
ter better than clover, provided the moisture conditions
are favorable.

RHODE ISLAND

Dr. H. J. Wheeler, Director Rhode Island experiment
station. — Alfalfa culture in Rhode Island is a very tmcer-
tain undertaking. A few persons have occasionally
met with some success, but the majority of experiments
have been failures because: (i) Most of the soil in
this state is too deficient in carbonate of lime to enable
alfalfa to succeed even if other conditions are favorable.
(2) It is occasionally almost destroyed by clover leaf
spot. (3) The general culture of alfalfa in this state
cannot be made successful even if all of the conditions
aside from the climate are made favorable. Farther

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 299

north where the snow falls before the ground freezes
and remains until the opening of spring, this plant can
be grown successfully. Farther south where the changes
are less severe, the same is true. In Colorado and other
places where irrigation is practiced, if it is desired to get
rid of a field of alfalfa, the ground is flooded after it is
frozen and the freezing of water over the surface accom-
plishes what is desired. In Rhode Island it not infre-
quently happens that we have in winter a considerable
fall of snow. A warm southeasterly rain may fall which
transforms it very shortly to slush. In a few hours
the temperature may drop to zero or below. Sometimes
rain which falls freezes over the surface, forming a solid
coating. These conditions in this state destroy the alfalfa
just as the flooding does it in the West, and while alfalfa
may be carried successfully through the winter, if the
season is favorable, I believe the chances are too great
to make it a promising crop. Last winter we carried
some through successfully and have done so once or twice
before, but my advice to Rhode Island farmers is to
grow the clovers, soy beans, and possibly cowpeas rather
than attempt to embark in growing alfalfa until it has
been definitely shown by experiment that the climate
and other conditions can be successfully combated.

SOUTH CAROLINA

Prof. C. L. Newman, Agriculturist South Carolina
experiment station. — We have, to some extent, had re-
markable success with alfalfa. On the old exposition
grounds at Charleston, over six tons of cured hay were
cut last year on one acre. This year one cutting afforded

300 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

4.15 pounds of cured hay. In the upper portion of the
state, alfalfa is grown with considerably greater diffi-
culty. At Anderson, the county seat of Anderson county,
there is an alfalfa field that was sown 65 years ago and
it still affords some return.

SOUTH DAKOTA

Prof. James W. Wilson, Director South Dakota ex-
periment station. — Experience shows that a good stand
of alfalfa can be secured, if ordinary care be exercised
in preparing the seedbed. It is not a plant that does well
when sowed on the native prairie sod after disking. On
the college farm during the spring of 1904 a small area
of native sod was disked five times; part was sowed to
alfalfa and part to clover. The next spring only a few
scattering plants of alfalfa could be found, while a fair
stand of clover was secured. Good results have been ob-
tained with both the Turkestan and the American varie-
ties. Neither has winterkilled during the time, and the
yield per acre in each case has been good. A field sowed
to Turkestan alfalfa in 1899 at Highmore Forge testing
station still produces good yields. The quantity of seed
to sow per acre depends largely on the way it is sowed,
requiring more if broadcast than when drilled. We sug-
gest 20 pounds when drilled and 25 pounds when sown
broadcast. The time to sow depends upon the con-
dition of tilth. Contrary to what is sometimes supposed,
alfalfa does not require a wet soil, but one that is well
drained, with a loose subsoil. The plants will stand cut-
ting several times during the first year. This method
should be resorted to when sown on a field badly infested

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 3OI

with weeds, in order to secure a stand of alfalfa. In 1902
a field rented by the college farm, which had been
cropped for several years and become foul with mustard,
was sowed to alfalfa. It was cut three times during the
growing season, and the result was that in 1903 there was
practically no mustard to be seen, but a first class stand of
alfalfa was obtained.

George E. McEathron of Beadle county writes : ''I
consider alfalfa and clover culture practicable in this lo-
cality. I do not think it necessary to inoculate soil for
these crops in South Dakota. After the first year I cut
my alfalfa fields three times and secured an average yield
of five tons to the acre. I have never allowed seed to
mature, always cutting for hay. No trouble from winter-
killing has been noticed."

0. S. Jones of Lake county writes: "I began raising
alfalfa on my place two miles west of Madison five years
ago. The soil is a dark loam with some sand in it, lays
level and has a sand and gravel subsoil. Water is ob-
tained at a depth of eight to ten feet. I have used both
the Turkestan and the common alfalfa, and I consider the
latter the better for my land, as it grows ranker, with
more leaf and better color than the former. I have had
the best success in sowing about the first of May, with-
out a nurse crop. On one four-acre piece seeded three
years ago, I pastured 150 to 175 head of hogs and spring
pigs for two months this year and also cut between 15
and 16 tons of hay in two cuttings. I sowed 12 acres this
year in two six-acre fields, that have been pastured, con-
tinually, with 175 head of hogs and pigs and ten head of
young cattle since early in July, and a great deal of it ma-

302 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

tured seed. I could have cut these pieces in August with
profit had I so desired, and then had plenty of growth to
have kept the sjock in pasture, changing pastures each
week."

A^. O. P. Synogroimd of Brown county writes : "I
consider alfalfa and clover culture practicable in this lo-
cality. I also consider the Turkestan variety superior to
the home-grown varieties. Cut the field twice the first
year and received four tons per acre. I have never cut
any for seed. These crops have not winterkilled here."

TENNESSEE

Prof, H. A. Morgan, Director Tennessee experiment
station. — Alfalfa has been known in Tennessee for many
years, but not until the general failure of Red clover, due
to one or more species of Colletotrichnm, and the search
for substitutes for Red clover, were any serious efforts
made to grow alfalfa in this state. On alluvial land
along the Mississippi river in west Tennessee, in what is
known as the Central Basin section of middle Tennessee,
and on the richer lands of east Tennessee, alfalfa has
been grown very successfully, and each year large areas
are being sown to this clover. Mr. L. Donaldson, of
Lake county, gives the following relative to the prepara-
tion of soil, etc., for alfalfa in the alluvial area of west
Tennessee : *'The land is plowed deep with large mold-
board breaking plows in September or about the first of
March. It is then harrowed until thoroughly pulverized,
and either about October lo or April i, two gallons of
seed are sown, by machine or by hand. The harrow is
used for covering the seed. We have no more trouble with

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 3O3

the crop after seeding The plants germinate and take
root rapidly. I have known alfalfa roots to reach a
length of two feet from the last of March to June 25
We frequently cut the crop five times per year." George
Campbell Brown of IMaury county states that he has sown
alfalfa in March using spring barley as nurse crop, and in
September with success. Land sown to alfalfa in 1901
yielded four cuttings per year in 1902, 1903, and 1904,
averaging from 16 to 18 tons per acre in the three years.
Mr. Brown uses soil for inoculating, and believes he has
gotten well-defined results from nitro-culture sent out by
United States department of agriculture. At the experi-
ment station at Knoxville, alfalfa has been successfully
grown for many years. Heavy applications of farm-
yard manure and the use of 300 pounds of acid phosphate
and 25 bushels of lime per acre invariably insures large
yields of alfalfa. Crab grass, Panicum sangiiinale, in
summer and chickweed, Stcllaria media, in winter are
enemies to alfalfa in this latitude. These pests should be
gotten rid of by the use of clean culture crops prepara-
tory to the sowing of alfalfa. With plenty of stable
manure, lime, and phosohorous, artificial inoculation
seems unnecessary. Any soil of over a few feet deep
may be prepared so as to grow profitable crops of alfalfa.
This preparation is much more expensive on some soils
than others.

TEXAS

Prof. B. C. Pittuck, Agriculturist of the Texas experi-
ment station. — Alfalfa should receive the attention of
'farmers in every section of Texas where conditions are in

304 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

any way favorable to its growth. At present prices,
after it is once established, a yield of one ton of hay per
acre will afford a good profit, while yields of four and six
tons, which are not unusual on favorable soils, make the
investment exceedingly profitable. The present demand
is much greater than the supply and bids fair to increase
in greater proportion during the coming year. Its in-
creasing popularity with the farmer is based upon sound
business principles, as its value does not consist solely in
its market price, but in its value as food for his stock and
food for his soil. It will furnish green pasturage and
hay of the best quality without materially impoverishing
the soil. Many farmers refrain from planting alfalfa
because some neighbor, far or near, planted on land ap-
parently similar to theirs, and it died of the disease com-
monly known as cotton root rot. It would be far better
for each farmer to test his own land, for alfalfa may be
affected by this fungus at one place and entirely unaffect-
ed on ground only a fev/ rods away. The value of an al-
falfa meadow is such as to warrant a farmer in giving
considerable time, labor and study to the plant, before de-
ciding that natural conditions prohibit him from success-
fully growing it.

UTAH

Aaron F. Farr, Jr., Cache county. — Fifteen years ago,
when I began raising alfalfa, I had 40 acres, and for the
past eight years I have had about 135 acres, all on heavy
clay soil, containing considerable salt, and underlaid with
very stiff, white clay. The soil is dry on top, but below
a depth of 2^ feet is damp, and salty water is found at

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 305

a depth of eight feet. Small grain was raised on the new
land for one or two years, after which the ground was
plowed in the fall, and again in the spring, harrowed,
and well pulverized. Seed was put in, 12 pounds to the
acre, two inches deep, with a press drill. The time for
sowing is about the same as for corn, in April or May.
If there is plenty of water, it is well to sow the alfalfa
with oats, and then cut for hay the first season. Some
of my land is irrigated, by flooding, three times in the
season, by means of a large canal from the river. The
more water is used, the more alfalfa there will be, but the
hay from unirrigated land is less sappy than that which
has been watered. The plant is not liable to winterkill
here, and on sandy loam and gravel soils the full yield is
attained the second year, ndiile, on heavy soils, it requires
three or four years. I have some that is 20 years old, and
cannot say how long it will yet continue vigorous. There
is difficulty in ridding land of the plant, unless it is
flooded in the winter time. We have usually two cut-
tings each season, with an average yield for each of about
two tons to the acre, although some parts of the land
yield four tons at each cutting. I have found it more
profitable to raise seed than hay, and for this purpose I
prefer the second cutting, using the self-rake, allowing
the alfalfa to lie in small piles until dry, then hauling,
stacking, and threshing, the same as wheat. The hay lies
about 22 hours in the swath, 24 hours in the windrow,
and one or two days in the cock, after which it is stacked
in large ricks with a horse fork. If properly cured, it
will not mold or heat, as it will if damp. On land valued
at $30 an acre, the cost of the alfalfa, in the stack, is

3o6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

about $1.50 a ton. The cost of baling is about $2 a ton,'
the popular weight for bales being about 100 pounds.
An average yield of seed is from 300 to 500 pounds to
the acre. Threshers take one-sixth toll, and can thresh
about 100 bushels in a day. The common machinery
saves only about two-thirds of the seed. A bushel of seed
weighs more than 60 pounds, and we put 175 pounds in
a two-bushel seamless sack. The average selling price of
the seed is about $3.50 a bushel. I have one piece of
land, containing 60 acres, not irrigated, valued at $30
an acre, from which, for ten years, I have cut one crop
of hay, and one of seed, and realized an annual net profit
of $1000 cash. As compared with clover and timothy
for feeding farm animals, my opinion is that alfalfa will
fatten quicker, but will not go so far. The pasturage is
profitable and satisfactory for horses and sheep; for hogs^
one acre of it is as good as 2)^ of Red clover, and for
cattle, one acre is as good as two of clover, provided the
land is dry. On wet land, the clover is better for cattle,
and, as to bloating, the danger is just the same from the
two plants. In my opinion, the plant will do well on side-
hills, where the drainage is good, if the land is plowed
deep, and the seed drilled in two inches deep and rolled
with a heavy roller. Once started, the plant lives almost
forever, on any soil, unless the wrong kind of a winter
strikes it. I have an alfalfa root, taken up in digging a
well, that is 21 feet long. The roots of alfalfa are sure to
find the water, if anywhere at all within reasonable reach.
John I ones, Utah county. — I have raised alfalfa 20
years, and now have 250 acres, mostly on sandy loam
upland ; have some on bottom land, where it grows too

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 307

rank for seed. The subsoil is light clay, with water from
15 to 20 feet from the surface. On land with hardpan
subsoil, it declines after a few years, unless irrigated
often. In digging for water, we find the subsoil begins
to get dry at about i8 inches, and continues quite dry for
8 or 10 feet; then moisture increases until water is
reached. We prepare ground by plowing in the fall, drag
very line in the spring, and sow as early as the season
will permit, in order to catch the spring rains, using 20
to 25 pounds of seed per acre. Our first cutting is made
about June 20, and is a little weedy, but there are fewer
weeds in later cuttings. We get about two tons the first
cutting, if the stand is good, and about the same the
other cuttings that year ; have no trouble here about win-
terkilling; standing w^ater is injurious to the plant. Here
alfalfa on uplands is watered three or four times each
season ; some land needs only one or two floodings, while
other lower lands have no irrigation. After getting a
good start from the seed, we begin watering about May
I, from small mountain streams. The first year requires
water about every week; after that, once a month is
sufficient. For hay, we begin cutting with the first bloom,
obtaining 2 to 2j^ tons from the first cutting, about 2
the second, and from i to i^ the third cutting; let it lie
about two days before hauling to stack, bemg careful not
to stack too green. For seed, begin cutting when seed is
ripe, the second crop being considered best. The grass-
hoppers have been troubling the second crop to some
extent, and we have on that account been cutting the first
crop for seed, using a reaper and separating with a thresh-
ing machine. On a basis of 7 per cent interest on $30

306 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

per acre with five tons of hay per acre each year, it has
cost about $1.55 per ton to raise alfalfa. We estimate $1
per ton for cutting and stacking, and 60 cents per acre
for water tax. It costs $2.25 per ton for baling, 100 to
125-pound bale, the size having no effect as to the keep-
ing of properly cured hay. From 8 to 10 bushels is a
fair average seed yield, the cost of threshing and clean-
ing being about 40 cents per bushel. Baled hay is worth
(free on board) about $6.50, and loose, about $4 per ton;
seed sells for about 7 cents per pound. Alfalfa hay is
preferable to timothy or clover, ton for ton, for feeding
without grain ; with grain, our liverymen prefer timothy.
We find alfalfa with grain equal to timothy for draft
horses, but for drivers, timothy is preferred. Alfalfa is
considered better than clover by our hog raisers;
it makes good pasturage for horses, and is better
than Red clover for cattle. If cattle are kept con-
tinually on the alfalfa, they are not very likely to bloat;
the trouble arises from turning hungry animals on it.
We use a gag, made of a stick about three inches in diam-
eter, to force the mouth open, but sometimes have to
make an opening in the paunch with a knife. Irrigation
seems to improve the quantity without increasing the
quality. The early cut hay has at least 20 per cent more
value than the straw from the seed crop; we have had
very good results from feeding the straw, as it always
contains more or less seed. Alfalfa sown on clay soil,
with hardpan subsoil, gradually dies out after two or
three years; also when water is near the surface; when
the roots reach water too near by, the plant dies. Sown
on good sandy loam, it reaches its best yield about the

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 3O9

second year ; on heavier soils, about the third year. We
have alfalfa 20 years old, as vigorous and good to yi^ld
as when started. It is preferable to clover for turning
under, as the large roots make more manure, and the tops
are much heavier. We grow alfalfa on our uplands
without irrigation, but it requires two or three years
to get a start; the first year, it makes a growth of 8 or
10 inches, and wilts; second year, it grows a little taller,
thickens up somewhat, and then, apparently, dies; the
third year, it gains in height and strength, and yields
a good crop, or even two crops, according to the subsoil.
If the subsoil is hardpan, I would not predict the result
as worth the effort. I do not see how Utah would get
along without alfalfa. I have 100 acres, from which are
cut from 2 to 2^ tons of hay per acre, and from 800 to
1300 bushels of seed each year, and it has not been irri-
gated for 15 years. Last year the seed yield was 968
bushels, and the grasshoppers damaged it considerably;
the seed brought 10 cents per pound on the track here.
We make good beef from the hay alone, and have done
so on the threshed straw.

\TERMOXT

Prof. J. L. Hill, Director Vermont experiment sta-
tion, in Bulletin No 114 says that popular interest in
the question of alfalfa culture was never so great in Ver-
mont as it is today. The result of 56 trials at as many
Vermont points are summarized : as, permanent successes,
12; temporary successes, ten; success at outset, eight;
seeming success, five; questionable, seven; failure, 14.
Thirty-six per cent of the trials may fairly be said to

3IO THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

have been a success, and 68 per cent of these were located
in the Champlain valley. Only lo of the 56 alfalfa
growers appear to have sown more than an acre. It
should be noted that success with a fraction of an acre
does not of necessity imply that an equal degree of suc-
cess would be attained with plantings on larger areas.
The preeminence of the Champlain valley in alfalfa grow-
ing seems to be due to the character of the farming in
that section and to the nature of its soil. Failures may
generally be ascribed to one or more of several unfavor-
able soil or weather conditions, to weeds, to disease, or
to seed which either is inferior or from an unsuitable
source. There seems to be a sufficient proportion of
successes in the state to justify the encouragement of
further trials. It is equally clear, however, that anyone
planting alfalfa for the first time should not only give
careful heed to the needs of the plant and to the methods
of culture outlined later, but should begin by experiment-
ing in a small way. The most significant thing developed
by the analysis of the returns to date is that the crop seems
to succeed best in the Champlain valley. Why is this?
Probably one factor, not apparent on the surface, is that
the men who have succeeded in Addison county are
largely sheep breeders who value the crop so highly in
their special industry that they are willing to give more
attention to its culture than are the dairy farmers. It
should be recalled in this connection, however, that the
evidence reviewed indicates practical success with alfalfa
at Plattsburgh and in adjacent Canadian territory.
Without pressing the matter to a definite conclusion, we
consider two things to be at least strongly suggested and

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 311^

worthy to be borne in mind in connection with further ex-
periments in alfalfa culture: (i) The chances of per-
manent success with it are probably better in Vermont
than they are farther south and east in New England.
This may be in part attributable to soil conditions and in
part to climate, the latter being associated with greater
remoteness from the seashore. (2) In Vermont the
chance of success in its culture seem to be greater in the
Champlain valley than elsewhere. The reasons suggested
in the above may apply in explanation of this. The na-
ture of the geological formations is also worthy of con-
sideration. It seems not unlikely that the relative rich-
ness of the soil of this region in lime and potash and its
other chemical and physical characters make it especially
favorable to alfalfa growing.

VIRGINIA

Prof. Andrew M. Soule, Director Virginia experiment
station. — In Bulletin No. 154 from this station we sum-
marize as follows: Alfalfa is being grown with success
in various parts of Virginia and the indications are that
it will do well in humid climates, providing the soil is
brought into suitable condition for its growth. Alfalfa
has many useful qualities. It yields from three to five
tons of cured hay in a year, and remains on the land for
a long period of time when once well established. It
grows best on deep, open, porous soils well supplied with
vegetable matter. The roots of alfalfa are from five to
15 feet in length, enabling it to draw much of its food
from the subsoil. It thus enriches the land for succeed-
ing crops and opens it up to the action of air and water.

312 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

Land Intended for alfalfa should be made very rich by
plowing under legumes or applying farmyard manure.
In addition, from 200 to 400 pounds of acid phosphate,
Thomas slag or bone meal, with 100 pounds of muriate
of potash, should be applied per acre. If the land is acid,
which may be determined by testing with blue litmus
paper, an application of 25 bushels of lime should be
made. It is generally best to use the unslaked lime,
which may be applied with a manure spreader, a grain
drill or broadcasted over the land and covered with a
harrow. Land intended for alfalfa should be carefully
cultivated in hoed crops or summer fallqwed so as to de-
stroy weeds, the worst enemy of alfalfa during the early
stages of its growth. Alfalfa may be seeded either fall
or spring. When fall sown it can be cut for hay the next
summer, whereas, the spring sown crop should be clipped
several times during the first season and left to mulch the
ground. Alfalfa seed is sometimes infested with dodder,
which grows as a parasite on the plant. The orange-
yellow threadlike appearance of dodder gives warning of
its presence, and it can be easily destroyed by cutting and
burning if taken at the outset. Alfalfa is frequently at-
tacked by leaf spot in the eastern states. The disease is
easily recognized as its name indicates, and persistent
clipping will generally eradicate it. The amount of seed
to sow varies, but 20 pounds will answer as a rule. Al-
falfa should be cut for hay when coming into bloom, as
it yields more nutrients per acre at that time, and succeed-
ing crops yield better. Alfalfa is not more difficult to make
into hay than is Red clover. It may also be pastured
to advantage, though there is some danger of bloat, and.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 313

owing to the high feeding vaiue of the hay, it is doubtful
whether it would be good practice to graze it in the East,
except with hogs. Alfalfa being a legume has the power
of assimilating atmospheric nitrogen under certain con-
ditions. It is thus a soil improver. Farmers cannot af-
ford to purchase nitrogen when they can gather it from
the air through the action of leguminous plants. Alfalfa
often fails, even though all the physical conditions seem
favorable, because the bacteria which live in the nodules
on its roots are not present in the soil. This deficiency
may be supplied by getting soil from an old alfalfa field
or from fields where Sweet clover or Bur clover pre-
viously grew with success, or by means of artificial cul-
tures. The Virginia experiment station, realizing the
importance of alfalfa to Virginia farmers and the dif-
ficulty of securing inoculated soil at a reasonable cost, has
undertaken the preparation of pure cultures which it is
distributing at a cost of 25 cents per acre. Soil inocula-
tion through artificial cultures is still in its experimental
stages, but it seems wise that Virginia farmers should be
given an opportunity to test these cultures at a moderate
cost and determine once for all their real value under
field conditions. The high feeding value of alfalfa has
long been recognized. It is admirably adapted to the
needs of all classes of live stock. It has been fed with
profit to horses, cattle, sheep and swine. It can be so
utilized as to largely take the place of wheat bran and
other expensive concentrates. The plats of alfalfa seeded
in the spring of 1904, both on the station farm and on
Brush mountain, show the importance of soil inoculation
and the advantages of using lime and phosphates on land

314 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

intended for this crop. From a general review of the
situation it appears that tliere is no reason why alfalfa,
under good management, should not succeed in many
parts of Virginia.

WASHIXGTON

F. M, Lowdcn, Walla Walla county. — In 22 years I
have had experience with from i to 400 acres of alfalfa,
on bottom, second bottom, and upland, with clay, sand
and loam soils, with subsoil of hardpan and strong alkali
from 18 to 20 inches below the surface, and water at
depth of 18 to 20 feet. The soil is seldom moist all the
way down, the dry soil beginning five to eight feet below
the surface and ending within two or three feet of the
water. After plowing deep and harrowing well, I sow
in the spring, late enough to miss frost, 25 to 30 pounds
to the acre; then cover, in light soil from one to two
inches, and in clay soil less. During the first season it
should be mowed so that the weeds cannot choke it out,
and then there will be about a ton of hay to the acre to
be cut in August. I irrigate with water from streams
thoroughly in the spring and after each cutting, using
enough water to soak the ground for a few days. New
land requires more water than old, but the quantity
needed is about the same every year. At three years the
plant attains its best yields, and with proper care will not
need reseeding. There are usually three cuttings each
season, with an average of i^ tons to the acre, and I
have known five cuttings. It is mowed for hay when it
commences to bloom, and for seed any time before the
frost comes, the second crop being best for the latter use.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 315

The seed is mowed, threshed and dried as any other clover
is. The hay should He before raking until it is thor-
oughly wilted, then cure in cock two or three days. We
stack in ricks i6 to i8 feet wide and any desired height
or length. The hay will not heat if well cured before
stacking. On land valued at $40 an acre, the cost of hay
in the stack is about $1.50, and to bale this costs $2 a ton.
The yield of seed is 5 to 10 bushels to the acre, and it sells
for $4.50 to $7.50 a bushel, while hay brings $4, formerly
$8. For threshing, a clover huUer is better than the com-
mon machine. The alfalfa straw is of double the value
of any other straw for feeding. The hay grown without
irrigation is not so rank as that which is watered, and is
consequently more valuable as a feed; any is better than
timothy, and equal to clover for cattle, but the seed must
form in it to make it valuable for working horses. After
cutting three crops in a season, I usually use the field in
the fall for pasturing cattle, and it furnishes nearly double
the feed that Red clover will, acre for acre. For hogs
the pasturage is much better than clover, and I sow with
blue grass and clover, on rich ground. For horses and
sheep the pasturage is better than clover, but causes bloat
in the same way. It is difficult to plow up alfalfa, but
continued cultivation will rid land of it when desired.

Oscar Druinhellcr, IValia Walla county. — Have grown
alfalfa for six years, and now have 150 acres, part on
bottom, some on clay, and a part on slightly sandy soil ;
subsoil is a thin layer of hardpan; below that a sort of
gumbo, and underneath that a white clay. Abundant
water is found at 10 to 18 feet, moist soil reachingf to the
water. Our land requires no special preparation for

3l6 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

alfalfa; manure is spread on weak spots; we sow 20
pounds of seed broadcast, about May ist, and harrow
once to cover. Some cut it the first year ; some years the
crop is not worth touching for either hay or seed; there
is no trouble here from wmterkilling. We never irrigate.
The first cutting yields about three tons, the second, about
two and one-half tons, the third, about two tons, and the
fourth, one ton. For hay, cutting should begin when in
full bloom; we never cut for seed, but the first crop is
best. The season must govern the time for curing,
whether two days or 10; it will heat and mold if not dry
before stacking; no choice in size of stacks. On land
worth $40 per acre, it costs about $1.50 per ton to grow
and put alfalfa in the stack; baling costs $1.50 to $2 per
ton, the bales weighing 150 pounds. Alfalfa hay sold for
$12 per ton in 1890, and is now selling for $2.50; seed
sells for 10 to 12 cents per pound. For cattle, alfalfa
hay leads all others; for work animals, it is a little
*'washy," but we use nothing else; for pasturing hogs,
one acre of alfalfa is worth two of clover, and it is found
satisfactory for horses and sheep; alfalfa will pasture
more cattle than clover, but is more productive of bloat,
especially on windy days. The best remedy for bloat
is to get the foreparts of the animal on high ground
and splash cold water on its back; when all else fails,
apply the knife to the left side. We prefer unirrigated
hay, which seems firmer and less "washy." Alfalfa
reaches its best yields about the third year, and will last
20 years y it is not difficult to kill ; it is similar to Red
clover for turning under for green manure. All cattle
here are fed on alfalfa hay alone. I have fed cattle in

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 317

open yards in December, January, and February, and
made them gain i6o pounds per steer in three months.
If beef on the Pacific coast would bring 3 cents, there
would be no better investment than alfalfa. In 1892,
we sold hay for $60 per acre ; to-day it will not sell for a
third of that

WEST VIRGINIA

Prof. J. H. Stewart, Director West Virginia experi-
ment station. — Very little alfalfa is grown in West Vir-
ginia. Within the past four or five years some stimulus
has been given it by current publications, etc., but exten-
sive growth has not obtained as yet. The attempts to
grow it on our small farm at the experiment station have
in fact been failures. However, there are a few small
tracts that have done well in portions of the state. Hon.
T. B. Davis of Mineral county and E. W. McNeil of
Hardy county are persons who have been successful. I
am frank to say, however, that the experiences and prac-
tice thus far in this state have not proven it to be a de-
pendable crop.

w^scoxsIN

Prof. R. A. More, Agronomist Wisconsin experiment
station. — Alfalfa is receiving great attention in Wisconsin
and dairymen have been quick to perceive its value.
Through the efforts of the experiment station, alfalfa
seed has been disseminated in every county in the state
and crops have been grown which were highly satisfac-
tory. Experiments at the station show that as much
protein can be secured from one acre of alfalfa as from

3l8 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

three acres of clover, nine acres of timothy or 12 of
Brome grass. In this experiment four cuttings of alfalfa
were secured, two cuttings of clover and one cutting each
of timothy and Brome grass. Alfalfa seed should have
its viability tested before the seed is purchased. Seed
that does not give a germination test of 90 per cent or
above should be rejected. We advise selecting high, well-
drained land inclined to be rolling. A clay loam on a
gravelly subsoil is best suited for growths of alfalfa. Sow
in spring as soon as ground works well, putting on about
twice the cultivation necessary for cereal crops. Where
land is inclined to be weedy, sow three pecks of barley per
acre as a nurse crop. If ground is free from weeds, sow
alfalfa seed without nurse crop, using at least 20 pounds
of seed per acre. Several hundred members of the Wis-
consin experiment association have been carrying on tests
with alfalfa since 1903, and practically all have succeeded
in getting good fields started. Bacteria-laden soil has
been shipped to members of the experiment association,
who are making tests, with directions for scattering on
a small plot, in order to get the proper bacteria estab-
lished in the soil. The sowing of some alfalfa seed with
clover for the purpose of getting a few alfalfa plants
established as bacteria distributers has been followed with
good success. These lands when later sown to alfalfa
result in good catches. Alfalfa should be cut when one-
tenth is in blossom, and not later than the first week in
September. We look for greatly increased acreage from
year to year as our farmers learn the value of this great
forage plant.

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 319

W. D. Hoard, Editor Hoard's Dairyman. — It is now
twelve years since the editor of the Dairyman com-
menced the practical study of alfalfa. A good deal of
experience as well as observation of the practices of
others has come to him in that time. He does not feel
that he has exhausted the subject by any means, but
there are a few things which he believes to be w-ell set-
tled principles. They may be enumerated as follows :

1. The richer the soil the better.

2. A carefully prepared seed bed. Too much pains
cannot be had here.

3. Good seed; every farmer should test the seed he
expects to sow\ A great amount of failure has come
from w^eak, infertile seed.

4. Side hills where the rain or melted snoW' in [March
will readily run oft and thus prevent an ice cap from sud-
den freezing is much the preferable location.

5. Cutting it each time as soon as the first blossoms
appear will always bring a stronger succeeding growth
for the next crop.

6. Never pasture it unless you wish to weaken it so it
will break up more easily the next spring.

7. Always cure it in the cock with hay caps if possi-
ble. The quality of the hay is greatly superior to that
which is cured in the sun or windrow.

The nutritive quality and value of alfalfa as well as
clover may be greatly lessened and the owner not be
aware of it, by allowing too much sunshine on the hay.
To throw away the feeding value of any food by un-
wise methods of handling or curing is very poor econ-
omy. For this reason farmers should make a closer study

320 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

than they do as to the right time of cutting alfalfa and
clover and the right way of curing it. Too many farm-
ers look only at the labor involved. They want to do it
quick. Hence they wait before cutting till the stalks are
overripe so they will dry quickly and then they use hay
loaders that will take up the hay in the swath overdried
and the goodness evaporated out of it by the action of the
sun. All this time they are never giving a moment's
thought to the great question : ''What kind of food is this
going to make for my cows next winter?" The best of
study and care should be given to this matter of curing
alfalfa and clover. Nicely cured clover is worth half as
much as bran as a milk producing food, and alfalfa is
worth fully as much. We have demonstrated in our own
stables that with 35 pounds of corn ensilage and 10
pounds of nice alfalfa hay a day, we can save half of the
grain ration that would be necessary if we fed other hay.

8. As a renewer and renovator of fertility we know
of nothing that will equal alfalfa. The present year is
proving that in Wisconsin most convincingly. Nearly
all of the old alfalfa, as well as clover seeding, was killed
by an ice storm in March. That compelled the farmers
to plow up these old fields and plant them to corn, pota-
toes or some sowed crop. The greater growth of crops
on these old alfalfa fields is universally noticed. The
farmers of the country have not half begun to know the
wonderful value of the alfalfa plant. For just this rea-
son they should not be discouraged in trying to grow it.

Dr. A. S. Alexander, Wisconsin experiment station. —
After all that has been written and said in favor of the
more general cultivation of alfalfa, it seems strange to

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES 32 1

find much prejudice and ignorance still existing among
farmers relative to the merits of this magnificent forage
plant. When we ask a farmer why he has not seeded an
area of land to alfalfa he almost invariably answers by
another question; viz., *'Do you think I can make it
catch?" And it is this doubt so generally existent that
keeps down the area of alfalfa, and hence the profits of
many a man who could make it a wonderful success.

To our mind there has been too much alleged scien-
tific talk relative to ''nitrification," *'root nodules" and
''soil inoculation" for alfalfa; so much of it, in fact, as a
fad, that the average farmer has become possessed of the
erroneous idea that it requires a deeply scientific know-
ledge of the subject and much trouble of various sorts
to secure a stand of alfalfa. For this reason many a man
has dismissed the subject from his mind and deemed it
best to think most of the simple things within his ken, but
in so doing he has missed some of the greatest boons and
blessings possible in his business. Alfalfa will grow on
most any good land that will produce clover and that is in
no way waterlogged. There is little mystery in its suc-
cessful cultivation, and the "tricks" of the business are
easily learned from the literature mentioned. We be-
lieve it to be one of the very finest of forage plants and a
grand adjunct in the feeding of hogs ; a crop in fact that
is bound to become common and that should at once be
given far more general attention than is now the case.
It is neither difiicult to obtain a catch nor make the crop
a success if the farmer will but try and in starting fol-
low the simple instructions now published by many of the
agricultural experiment stations.

322 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

WYOMING

Asil T. Wilson, Fremont county. — For six years I
have been raising alfalfa on first-bench upland, a gravelly
loam, with a cement subsoil of a lime nature. Water is
found at 40 feet; moist soil is encountered at a depth of
12 feet from the surface, and continues until water is
reached. A depth of one inch for seeding is best. Sow
in early spring. If alfalfa and timothy are sown together,
sow 20 pounds of the former to 6 of the latter; if alone,
20 pounds of alfalfa. No weeds will trouble; cut either
crop for hay ; the first crop for seed. Watering after the
last cutting will cause alfalfa to winterkill. Irrigate as
early as possible, if dry, and whenever getting dry, also
about five days before cutting ; the soil being moist after
cutting, the next crop will start up quickly. The larger
the quantity of water used the better if it runs off quickly.
We obtain water from a stream. After the first year I cut
twice, obtaining two tons each cutting. I cut for hay
just as it comes into bloom, as it is not so woody
and more leaves are saved. The first cutting is prefer-
able for seed. When cutting for seed, wait until the curls
get well filled and black ; put it into cocks and thresh when
dry. Alfalfa hay should be cut one day and raked the
next ; then cock, and let it stand two or three days before
stacking ; by so doing all the leaves are saved, and it cures
in the cock so there is no danger of molding in the stack.
My alfalfa in stack costs $1 per ton, from land valued at
$5 per acre. Irrigation costs 20 cents per acre. Baling
costs $3 per ton, 150 pounds in bale. Seed yields six
bushels per acre; threshing costs $1 per bushel. Prices
for hay have ranged from $5 to $10 per ton, and $7 per

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES ^2^

bushel for seed. Alfalfa hay is equal to clover or timothy
for farm animals. For swine pasturage it is better than
clover ; one acre v^ill pasture lo head of swine, gainingone
pound per head each day. For horses and sheep it is good,
and as good for cattle as clover, but dangerous, as they
bloat and die. The best yields on upland are from three to
five years after seeding; and, if watered at proper inter-
vals, it will last 20 years. There is no difficulty in ridding
land of alfalfa; plow it late in the fall, level it down and
mark it, then water, and let it freeze up in winter. Alfalfa
for green manure is as good or better than Red clover.
Without plenty of rain, I would not recommend growing
alfalfa in any locality. Seed raised from alfalfa thin on
the ground is best.

John H. Gordon, Laramie county. — During the past lo
years, I have had from lo to 200 acres of alfalfa on sec-
ond bottom and upland, with sandy loam from two inches
to six feet deep, and below this soft rock, water being
found at depths of 20 to 200 feet. I plow or break the
soil the first year, and raise a crop of wheat or oats ; the
second year plow deep, sow about half a crop of oats,
and when this is well harrowed, sow 20 pounds of alfalfa
seed and cover it about two inches deep. To get the best
results, this seeding is done about April ist, and there is
no trouble here w^ith weeds. In cutting the grain, the
alfalfa is cut off too, but it does not grow tall enough for
hay the first year. The plant does not winterkill, and
reaches its full yields by the third or fourth year ; I have
found no necessity for reseeding any of my land. We
irrigate from streams, the quantity of water used depend-
ing on the season. There are generally three applications

324 THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

of water, about six inches each time. After the first two
or three years, only about half the quantity used at first
will be needed. After the first year I cut twice, and
obtain about i}4 tons to the acre each time. The first
crop IS best for seed, and is harvested when the top bolls
are dead ripe, raked the day after cutting, bunched for
two days and then stacked, to be threshed with the com-
mon threshing machinery, putting through twice. Five
bushels to the acre is a common yield of seed, and the
cleaning and threshing cost 50 to 75 cents a bushel. The
hay is cut when the greater part is in bloom, allowed to
lie about a day before raking, cured about three days,
and then stacked, 14 to 16 feet wide, 60 feet long, and
20 feet high. It does not seem to heat or mold here. The
total cost in the stack is about $1.50 a ton, and baling, in
100-pound bales, costs $2 a ton. Selling price of loose
hay in this section is $5 a ton, and the seed, 10 to 12 cents
per pound in the market. The straw is worth about as
much as the hay for feed. I am well satisfied with the
general results of growing alfalfa here, and am now pre-
paring 200 acres for seeding. Where it will grow well,
it is the best forage plant ever discovered, being good
feed for cattle, hogs, sheep, fowls, and, in fact, all ani-
mals on the farm, while as a fertilizer it cannot be sur-
passed. But one cannot do anything with it if there is
not sufficient moisture to raise wheat or oats.

INDEX.

PAOE

Alabama, alfalfa in 16

Alberta, alfalfa in 15

Experiments 231

Acclimation 8, 13. 28

Acid soil, test for 45

Unfavorable 44, 201

Acreage, too great 87

Address, Professor Spill-
man's 9

Adulterants

32, 35, 36, 37,39, 40

Africa, alfalfa introduced., 2

South, alfalfa in 15

Agricultural Department

bulletin 83

Agriculture, Stover's; hay-
caps 85

Agrostologist's opinion .... 9

Air shaft in mow 95

Alaska, hay for 104

Albuminoids 22

Alfalfa fields 200 years old. 5

Alfalfa, fails "here" 51

Description 5

Below sea level 15

Improves land values. .. .204

Origin of name 2

Objection to 18

Preparations 182

Is "queen" 1^1

Replaces other legumes. 151

Synonyms 4

Alfalmo 185

Alfilaria, merits of 227, 228

Alsike and alfalfa com-
pared 21, 148

Analyses, corn 22

Seed 33

Soil, free 64

Vary 137

Animals, keep off field 221

Annual manuring 70

Appetizer, alfalfa as an... 125
Apples and alfalfa to-
gether 224

Arabian seed, imported 8

Arapahoe County, Colo-
rado 243

Argentine Republic, alfalfa
in 15

PAGE

Arizona, alfilaria in 227

Experiments 8, 233

Army worm 219

Asiatic seed introduced 7

Assimilative restrictions ..134
Avery, Prof. S., on al-
falmo 185

Bacteria, cowpeas in-
crease 48

Humus helps 61

In some soils 0]

In nodules 60, 198

Introducing 46, 50, 51

Introducing unnecessary. 199
Lacking, failure result... 66

Need nitrogen 60

Not fertilizers 201

On cowpeas 49

Spread on farm 194

Bale, hollow 105

Bales, heating 104

Loading 105

Poor prices for 104

Round 104

Size 104

Shipping 104

Baling 102

New Mexico 283

Machine new 105

Space saved 105

Barley as tuirse crop 58

Leaves weeds 59

Bare spots restored 71

Barn, storing 95

Beach, C. W 248

Beadle County, South Da-
kota 300

Beak on trefoil seed 39

Beef, balanced ration for.. 135

Cheap western 142

Making 138

Yield to acre 130, 131

Bees 'and alfalfa 12, 175

Belgium, alfalfa introduced. 2

Berry, J. W., storing 96

Bindweed 219

Blackshere, J. R., report.. 260
Blake, John, experiments. .233

320

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Bliss, D S., report 267

Bloat, lambs do not 172

Preventing 110, 113, 171

Preventing- in Kansas... Ill

Professor Mayo on 116

Remedy 115, 121, 316

Rules to prevent 115

Tapping for 119

Not due to food 117

On alfalfa pasture 109

Bloom, cutting in 80

Cut in 88

Blossoming, cut before... 80
Blue grass or alfalfa for

pigs 158

Blue-grass, yields 21

With alfalfa Ill

Botany of alfalfa 4

Bowman, Prof. M. L., re-
port 257

Bran analysis 127

And alfalfa compared...

10, 79, 85. 144

And alfalfa meal for

cows 184

Food value 132

Sown with seed 56

Brandon, Manitoba, yield.. 14
Breaking sod hard work... 195
Breeders' Gazette on sheep

pasture 114

Brewers' grains and alfalfa

compared 114

British Columbia, alfalfa

in 14

Broadcast seeding 55

Brome grass and 'alfalfa

compared 21

Brooks, Prof. William P.,

report 266

Brown, Benjamin, report.. 261
Brown County, South Da-
kota 302

Brown, George Campbell,

report 303

Bruner, Prof. L., on hop-
per dozer 216

Buckhorn in alfalfa seed.. 41
Buckwheat bran, food

value 132

Buffum, Prof. B. C, on fer-
tilizing value 192

Bulletin, Alabama 2.32

Farmers', baled alfalfa.. 104
Farmers', irrigation .... 77

PAGE

Bulletin, Continued

Fa-rmers', alfalfa for

hogs 160

Kansas, hog raising 156

Nebraska, soiling and

pasture 123

Nebraska, feed test 139

New Jersey, feed values,

132

New York, fodder crops. 126

Ohio, impure seed 33

Texas, feedstuff s 127

Utah, cuttings 128

Utah, (irrigation 74

Vermont 309

Virginia 311

Wyoming, fertilizing

value 192

Bulletins, various hay com-
position 75

Buncher 87

Burnett, Prof. E. A., di-
mensions of ton 229

Burning weeds 69

Bushel weight 31

Butter fat, cost 150

Butter, the marketable

product 147

Buyer to blame 41

Buying soil, necessity of. . 61

Dangers of 62

Not necessary 61

Cache County, Utah 304

California, alfalfa intro-
duced 2

Cutting in 89

Eleven cuttings 10

Experiments 8, 238

Feeding alfalfa alone.... 148

Sheep fattening 205

Camden County, New Jer-
sey 282

Canada, alfalfa in 14

Time to sow 47

Canadian Northwest yield.. 14

Cannula for bloat 119

Cape Colony, alfalfa in 15

Capons on alfalfa 187

Carbohydrates and fats in-
terchangeable 135

Function of 135

Not replace protein 136

In excess 136

In hay 76

Lacking 125

INDEX

327

PAGE

Carbonaceous foods needed. 125
Carlyle, Prof. W. L., hay. . .173
Cattle, dangers in pasture.. 109

Experiences with 110

Growing-, balanced ration. 135
Young, balanced ration.. 135

Pasturing 235

Utah, fed 25

Chase County, Kansas 260

Champlain Valley 310

Characteristics, seed 37

Chickweed, destroying 303

City use of alfalfa 187

Clark County, Kansas 258

Clark, Thomas J., report... 283

Clay, alfalfa on 15, 19, 17

Climates adapted to 15

Affects irrigation 77

Curing In dry 87

Arid, effect on hay. 76, 88, 94

Arid, irrigation in 73

Humid, curing difficulties 88

Plumid, difficulties 81

Humid, effect on hay. ... 76

Humid, harvesting 82

Humid, hay-caps . . . .85, 89

Humid, haying in 94

Humid, seed raising 92

Clipping before bloom 67

Invigorates 67

Clothier praises alfalfa 10

Clover, alfalfa following. . . 50

And alfalfa compared. 20, 21,

127, 143, 146, 148, 149, 222

Beaten on thin soil 19

Bur, adulterant ...32, 33, 40

Bur, bacteria on 199

Bur, everywhere 61

Bur, seed recognized .... 39

Bur seed in alfalfa 32

Feed value 126, 132, 145

Kay making 83

Hop, an adulterant 35

Huller for threshing 91

Pin 227

Plowed for alfalfa 49

Protein value 133

Sweet, adulterants

32, 33, 40

Sweet, bacteria 60

Sweet, everywhere 61

Sweet, stock reject 40

Sweet, seed described.... 40
With alfalfa 51, 112

PAGE

Clover soil. Sweet, for Inoc-
ulating 60, 202

Cocking at night 84

Colorado, alfalfa precedes

sugar beet 173

Alfalfa in orchards 223

Bees in 175

Corn and alfalfa com-
pared 132

Cuttinar in 73

Experiments 243

Pall sowing in 53

Feeding in 141

Ground alfalfa for pigs.. 182

Harvesting in 84

Hay composition 76

Hog rations 156

Lamb feeding 173

Losses from stacking. ... 98

Losses in curing 82

Pasturing sheep 113

Plowing alfalfa for other

crops 193

Seed 29

Sheep fattening 205

Siloing 102

Value of stubble 191

Wetted hay 81

Colusca County, California. 241
Combustion, spontaneous.

See Fire
Composition, irrigation in-
fluences 74

Prof. Ten Eyck quoted. . . 75

Varies 149

Compression, double 104

Connecticut, experiments. .247
Cooke, Prof. W. W., corn

and alfalfa 132

Co-operative Irrigation ex-
periments 76

Corn analysis 127

And alfalfa compared...

22, 132, 222

Before reseeding 72

Composition 136

Fails 16, 17, 23

Fed with alfalfa 125

Feed value 132

Fodder and alfalfa com-
pared 148

Fodder, feed composi-
tion 136

Fodder, feed value 145

Fodder, analyses 127

328

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Corn, Continued

Fodder, protein value... 183

Fodder, value 126

Following alfalfa 193

Increasing yield with al-
falfa 194

Lands, Illinois, alfalfa

on 16

Meal sown with seed 56

Precedes alfalfa 46

Money from acre 25

Silage and alfalfa for

cows commended 152

Stover and alfalfa com-
pared 148

Unprofitable fattening

food 126

Cortes brings alfalfa to

America 2

Cottonseed, analysis 127

Meal replaced by alfalfa. 151

Hulls, analysis 127

Analysis 127

Composition 137

Cotton soils, depleted, for

alfalfa 16

Cottonwood river bottom

lands 260

Cottrell, Prof. H. M., al-
falfa meal 183

Early cutting 80

Sowing 30

Spontaneous combustion

Country Gentleman, dod-
der 207

Cover crop, winter before

alfalfa 48

Cowpea analysis 127

Cowpeas, bacteria 49

Before fall seeding 49

Feed value 132, 145

Increase bacteria 48

Increase fertility 48

Preceding alfalfa 46

Prepare soil for alfalfa.. 46

Winter cover 48

Cows, number to acre 205

Scrub fed in Kansas 143

Sell farm produce 147

Crab grass, destroying 303

In seed 35

Keeping down 112

Persistent enemy 68

PAGE

Craters in center, prevent-
ing 97

Creep, in pasturing lambs. 172

Cresceus eats alfalfa 167

Critical time with alfalfa.. 73

Crops, small 65

Comparisons 130

First season 65

To introduce bacteria. . . 50
Crop-worn land improved.. 16
Cultivation, perfect, essen-
tial 44

Curing, Arizona 235

Case in 93

Difficult after rain 82

Dry climates 87

Hay-caps for 84

Important agent in 93

Improper 83

Kansas 259

Losses in 82, 93

New Mexico 283

Pennsylvania bulletin.... 83

Poor method 87

Proper 83

Rules 89

Stack 90

Test 97

Utah 304

Washington 314

Windrow 87

Cuscuta arvensis 42

Cuscuta epithymum 42, 207

Cut for cows 144

Cutting after rain 82

Before or after irriga-
tion 73

Colorado 246

Dates, Utah 78

Difficulties in humid cli-
mate 81

Early 21

Early, objections 89

Early, Professor Cottrell

quoted 80

Ensilage first 101

First, not for seed 89

For silo 101. 102

Frequent 88

In bloom 88

Kansas 261

Montana 271

Number of times 89

Rules 89

Seed time 89

INDEX

329

PAGE

Cutting, Continued

Second, for seed 92

Third, for seed 91

Time 80, 82, 89

Utah 304

Clover and alfalfa com-
pared 20

Early, most protein in. . 81

Nine a year 10

Number in Alabama 231

Number in California. . .242

Relative values 127

Six or more under irriga-
tion 72

Time between 24

Two preferred 88

Dactylis glomerata with al-
falfa Ill

Damp hay, storing 97

Dampness in mow 97

bangers in irrigation 73

Danger from dampness.... 97
Dairy cow, balanced ra-
tion 135

Interests enhanced 205

Products in South 14

Dairies, alfalfa 20

Dairying, alfalfa in 143

Davis, Hon. T. B., alfalfa

in West Virginia 317

Dawley, F. E., dodder 207

be Jarnette, J. B. experi-
ments 241

Deer Lodge County, Mon-
tana 271

Defective alfalfa seed 33

Delaware, experiments 248

Seed for 29

Department of Agriculture

experiments 8

Buying soil 62

Imports Asiatic seed 7

Hog raising 160

Depth roots go 6

Description of alfalfa .... 5
Desert, alfalfa in Nevada,

16. 17

Dew on hay, effects 85

Dextrine losses in hay 81

Dickson, W. H., experi-
ments 249

Difficulties of growing in
1793 3

PAGE

Reduced by fall sowing. 49
Digestible matter to acre.. 126

Digestive restrictions 134

Dimensions to ton 229

Diseased soil for inocula-
tion 62

Disking 70

After freshets 44

After turning 69

Benefits of 71

Each spring 70

Fields after cutting 24

Overcomes failure 71

Splits crowns 57

To kill weeds 59

District of Columbia, yield

in 14

Distribution of alfalfa.. 13, 14
Dodder, annoying enemy, .200

Cut with scythe 91

Destroying, Alabama . . . .232

Eradicating 210

Fighting 207

In alfalfa seed 32, 35

Virginia 311

Most dreaded 42

Objectionable impurity. . 42

Seed described 41

Seed not adulterant 42

Seed removing 42, 91

Spreading 209

To get rid of 42

Dodson, Prof. W. R., alfal-
fa for Louisiana 14

Report 264

Donaldson, L., report 302

"Don'ts" 225

Double compression 104

Downing, Jacob, experi-
ments 243

Drainage necessary 18

Drenching animals 122

Drill seeding 55

Favored by Spurrier. ... 67
Drumheller Oscar, report. 315

"Dry land" alfalfa 29

Dry matter in corn 22

Drying out, danger of soil. 50
Duggar, Prof. J. F., Ala-
bama 231

Dunn, George W., report.. 295
Dyeing with alfalfa seed.. 32

Dying out 221

Earthworms encouraging. . 46

330

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Economy of alfalfa 151

Of alfalfa in dairying. . .149

Of balanced ration 134

Of labor 21, 25

Of root growth G

Eight cuttings in Louis-
iana 14

Eighty feet to water 44

Elements specially needed. (J5

Eleven cuttings a year 10

Elgin dairyman praises al-
falfa 153

Enemies 20(5

Ensiling 270

Kansas 151

England, growing in 2GI

Alfalfa introduced 2

Examination of soil G4

Example of success 17

Exhibition stalk, large.... G
Experiment stations dis-
favor nurse 59

Favor inoculation 60

Export alfalfa hay 104

Exports, seeds 31

Erf, Prof. Oscar, alfalfa for

cows 149

Erodium citcutarium 227

Essentials of growing 44

Of preparing soil 4G

Evaporation in curing 83

In mow 97

Failures, because not cut.. G9

Causes of 220

Due to weeds 48

Of seed 30

Overcome by disking. ... 71

Redeeming G5

To be expected 201

Fairchild, D. G., Arabian

seed 8

Fall sowing 49, 52, 53

Fanning mill 91

Fanning removes dodder. . 42
Farr, Aaron F. Jr., re-
port 304

Fat and car-bohydrates in-
terchangeable 13.")

In corn 21

In hay 7G

Not replaceable by pro-
tein 13G

Fats in excess 130

Lacking in alfalfa 125

PAGE

Fattening with corn un-
profitable 12fi

Farming, character altered. 17
Farmers' Assistant men-
tions alfalfa 3

Farms, fruit, alfalfa on... 17

Feed, quality 145

Value, fodder crops 12G

Values, various 145

Feeding alfalfa alone 148

Before pasturing 110

Colorado 141

Cows economically 152

Economical western ....142
Experiments for milk... 184

Hogs, Nebraska 159

Tests 138

Tests, hog 156

Tests, Kansas 138, 142

Tests, Nebraska 139

Tests, various cuttings.. 81

Tests, Utah 138

Waste in 144

Value, Arizona 236

Value, California 241

Value, 'Colorado 247

Value, Idaho 253

Value, Kansas 259

Value, Utah 305, 306

Value, various cuttings . 88
Value, various crops ....132

Feedstuffs, analysis 126

Fertility, best means of im-
proving 147

Increased by cowpeas . . 48
Robbed by nurse crops.. 58

Fertilization by bees 177

Fertilizers, Alabama. .231, 232

Specially needed 65

Fertilizing, Georgia 250

Virginia 312

Long Island 288

Fescue, meadow yields. ... 21
Festuca elatior with al-
falfa Ill

Fiber in corn 22

Fields disked after cut-
ting 24

Of alfalfa 200 years old. . 5
Old, in South Carohna. . 9

Old in West 9

Fire for weeds 69

Preventing 96

Fires caused by wet hay. . 97
Occur, when 98

INDEX

331

PAGE
Fires, Continued

Professor Cottrell dis-
cusses 98

Rare 90

Flesh, forming 11

Flooding at critical time.. 73

Effects 44

For second crop 72

Floor, loose preferred for

storing 95

Florida, alfalfa in 15

Fodder corn, feed value... 145

Crops, feed value of.... 120
Fodders, values of va-
rious 145

Fort Collins lambs 173

Foster, Prof. L., cuttings. .128

Foxtail, keeping down 112

France, alfalfa introduced,

1, 2

Oldest fields in 5

Seed from 32

Fraser, W. J., feed for

cows 152

Fraud in alfalfa seed 30

Freshet, disking after 44

Freshets, effect 44

Freezing effect on soil 195

Harm from 50

Soil for seeding 52

Fruit farms, alfalfa on 17

Raising, alfalfa in 223

Fullerton, H. B., report.. 288
Furnas County, Nebraska. 273
Garman, Prof. H., report.. 204
Gaylord Farm Sanatorium

248

Georgia, experiments 250

Germ killed 27

Germany, seed from 32

Germinability, storing im-
pairs 30

Germination, conditions in-
fluencing 57

Test seed for 28

Gila River irrigation. 234, 283

Ginther, C M., report 2.54

Gill, E. T., report 282

Gluten meal, feed composi-
tion 137

Replaced 151

Go-devil 87, 95

Gophers injure alfalfa. .. .212
Grades and grading hay... 105

PAGE

Graham, Thomas C, ex-
periments 235

Grain and alfalfa com-
pared 101

Encourages weeds 59

Grange meeting at Mr.

Worker's IS

Grant County, New Mexico

283

Grasses and alfalfa com-
pared 21

Grass, destroying by fire.. 09

Pin 227

Preceding alfalfa '.*.*. '. '. ". 50

Protein value 133

Grasses in pastures 110

With alfalfa Ill, 113

Grasshoppers 21(;

Gravel, alfalfa on 15, 18

Greece, alfalfa taken to... 1
Grinding, time and power

required 184

Growth after cutting 21

Delayed by cold water. . 73

From imported seed 30

Gumbo, soil, alfalfa suc-
ceeds 17

Habitat of alfalfa 1

Influence 28

Habits altered by locality.. 28
Farm, changed by al-
falfa 181

Handling hay 89

Little advisable 94

Hanna, S. C, bloat Ill

Hansen, Prof. N. E. in

Asia 7

Harrow, common not disk

Harrowing after cutting. . 24

To kill weeds 59

Harrows 70

Hartman and Weil, report

285

Harvest, dates Utah 78

Early for hogs ir>0

Harvester, Acme 2>V2

Harvesting v. '79

By stock 107

Few and many 88

Humid climates 82

Like grain 88

Loss of leaves 80

Operations, time be-
tween 87

Z2>^

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Harvesting, Continued

Seed 89

Time 80

Time to begin 82

Hawaii, liay for 104

Hay and silage compared. 102
Association, National,

grades 106

Association, Spillman's

address 9

Baling, California 240

Composition depends on

water 75

Feed value 145

First season 65

Grades 105

In mow, watch 97

In windrows 84

Lying in swath 84

Making, Arizona 237

Making, losses in 82

Meal cheaper than baled

186

Measuring in stack 228

Money in 22, 23

Poorly cured, value 87

Preserved, color 94

Prairie and alfalfa com-
pared ..140, 141, 148, 150
Prairie, composition ....130
Prairie, dimensions of

ton 229

Prairie, feed value 145

Value of 91

Values, Arizona 235

Various, and alfalfa com-
pared 148

Yield to acre, Utah 78

Hay-caps advantages 85

Described 86

Favor baling 103

Humid regions 84

Size of 86

Usa of 85, 86, 89

Haying, time between op-
erations 84

Hay-loader, belt 88

Headden, Prof. W. P., stub-
ble value 191

Long roots 6

Curing 82

Seed storing 31

Heating, prevent in tran-
sit 105

Seed 31

PAGE

Heating, Continued

Seed stack 90

Stack 90

Heaving, danger of 50

Height, normal 6

Highmore forage testing
station 300

Hill, Prof. J. L., report... 309

Hillman, Prof. F. H., dod-
der 42

Hitchcock, A. S., baled al-
falfa 104

Feeding alfalfa alone... 148
Quoted on irrigation 77

Hoard, Gov., brood sows.. 155

Yield 23

Rotation 194

Hoard's Dairyman, econom-
ical butter 144

Hogs, alfalfa or blue grass

for 158

Balanced ration for 136

Cut early for 160

Food for fattening 46

Kansas 155

Like alfalfa 23,154,237

Over stocking with 161

Pastured on surplus

acres 87

Pasture for 48, 108

Hollingsworth, J. H 255

Honey from alfalfa 12, 178

Hoove, See Bloat.

Hopper dozer 216

Kansas 218

Prof. S. J. Hunter 217

Hopkins, Prof. C. G., pot

cultures 202

Report 253

Hog raising, Kansas 161

Horse raising, Ohio 166

Raising 165, 166

Horses, alfalfa for work... 166

Alfalfa for driving 167

Cheap feed for 188

Injure pasture 109

On pasture 170

Overfed 166

Thrive on pasture 109

Humus favors bacteria. ... 61

Hunter, Prof. S. J., hopper

dozer 217

Bees 176

Idaho, experiments 251

Italy, alfalfa introduced... 1

INDEX

333

PAGE

Illinois, alfalfa in 16

Experiments 253

Feeding cows in 152

Pot culture experiments

, 202

Seed for 29

Imported seed 30, 31

Impurities in seed 32, 33

Income, alfalfa. .22, 23, 25, 26

Indiana, experiments 254

Yield in 23

Infected soil 60

Injuries from lime 66

Inoculation, Alabama 232

Any method helpful 199

Dangers of 62

Seed not needed 64

Failures expected 201

Illinois 254

Long Island 2SS

Massachusetts 266

Methods various 63

Necessary 200

Not like magic 202

Old theory 197

Soil, not needed 64

Soil, Sweet clover 202

Unnecessary 200

Virginia 311

With diseased soil 62

Insects carried by soil.... 63

In seeds 31

Introducing on farm 2S

Iowa, experiments 257

Leaf spot in 213

Pig raising 158

Seed for — • 29

Spring sowing 54, 55

Irish, C. W., depth of root

growth 6

Irrigation after cutting 73

Alfalfa under 7-

Before cutting 73

California 238

Colorado 244

Co-operative experiments

Effect on hay 76

Excessive •-

Gila River 234

Harrow 24

Idaho 253

Influence on composition 74

PAGE

Irrigation, Continued

Influence on seed 28

Increases protein 75

Necessary to saturate

soil 78

New Mexico 283

Oregon 295

Salt River 236

Spring 73

Utah bulletin 74

Water to acre, Utah.... 77
Irrigation Farming quoted.. 73

Irrigated land, yield 10, 23

Irrigations, number of.... 77

Italy, seed from 32

Jefferson, book dedicated

to 3

Jenkins, Dr. E. H., report. 247

Jones, John, report 306

Jones, O. S., report 301

Jordan, Dr. W. H., opinion

of feed 141

Kafir corn preceding al-
falfa 49

Fed with alfalfa 125

Feed composition 136

Kansas, alfalfa flowers. .. .176

Alfalfa for dairyman 149

Alfilaria for 228

Annual top dressing 70

Bees 175, 176

Bulletin, balanced ra-
tion, 135

Broadcasting at experi-
ment station 56

Cows on small area 144

Curing in 87

Early cut hay for hogs.. 160

EnsiUng 151

Crab grass 68

Eighty feet to water 45

Experiments 259

Fall sowing 53

Feeding cows 144

Feeding tests 138, 142

Grass in alfalfa fields... 112

Gopher injuries 213

Hay, composition of 76

Hog raising ...155, 161, 163

Hopper dozer 218

Horses raised 165

Lands, values increased. 204

Low cost ration 150

Prairie dogs 212

334

THE*' BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Kansas, Continued

Profit from hog's 1G2

Profit in 22, 23, 25

Preventing bloat Ill

Protein in cuttings 81

Seed 20

Seed raising 90

Self-binder for harvest-
ing 88

Sheep fattened 171,287

Siloing 102

Soiling and pasturing 123

Sowing 57

Spring sowing 55

Station disfavors salt... 100

Station on baling 103

Stock feeding 103

/Storing in 9G

Time to sow 47

Third cutting for seed.. 91

Wheat after alfalfa 193

Wintering horses 107

Work with scrub cows.. 143
Kenilworth Farms, Ari-
zona 235

Kent County, Delaware. . .219

Kentucky experiments 201

Kiefer, H. W., report 251

Kilgore, Dr. B. W., report

289

Kirk, F. S., pasturing 113

Yield 24

Labor prices 204

Saved 25

Lake County, South Da-
kota 301

Lamb-feeding, Nebraska. . .172

Lambs, fattening 46

Fort Collins 173

On pasture 114

Never bloat 172

Pasturage for 48

Quarter in seed 35

Land, alfalfa on bottom... 24
Foul, unfit for alfalfa... 59

Values improved 204

Worthless made valuable

Lang-ston, Alva, yield 24

Lantz, Prof. D. E., gopher

injuries 213

Large alfalfa roots 18

Latitude influence on seed
28

PAGE
Leaching, winter prevented

Leaf spot 63, 211

Legumes, bacteria on 60

Prepare soil 49

Leaves and stems, feed

value compared 82

Broken by tedder 84

Lost in curing... 80, 82, 183

Help in curing 83

Proportion to stems 128

Saved by slings 94

Pay for floor 99

Value 79

Lewis, D C, report 281

Light discolors seed 31

Liggett, Prof. W. M., re-
port 2o9

Lime, air slaked 6(5

Injuries 66

Must be applied 64

Needed 45, 201

Prevents mold 100

Small dressings advis-
able 06

Soil for 231

Liming 249

Connecticut 248

Massachusetts 266

Ohio 290

Lincoln County, Nebraska. 275
Linseed meal and alfalfa

compared 127

Feed composition 137

Replaced by alfalfa 151

Listing waxy ground 52

Litmus for testing soil.... 45

Loader, disadvantages 95

Loading, slings 94

Localities influence seed... 28

Logan County, Idaho 252

Long Island, experiments. .288
Loss from impure seed.... 32

Losses due to wetting 81

In curing- 82

Louisiana, alfalfa 'dn 14

Cutting in 89

Experiments 265

Lowden, F. M., report. .. .314
Lucerne, book dedicated to

Jefferson 3

Intermediate 76

Ongrin of name 4

Yellow 7

Lumps, soil, bad 50

INDEX

335

PAGE

Mangels, feed value.. 126. 145

Protein value 133

Manitoba, alfalfa in 14, 15

Mammoth clover yields ll

Manure before* seeding. . .. 04

Manuring 40, 70

Wheat land for alfalfa. . 4^
Mare, ration for brood.. _^..

IGo, 160

Marketing 137

Markham, L. AV., experi-
ments ^f^

Maryland, alfalfa in 10

Seed for ^

Massachusetts, analyses,

clover ^^

Experiments -^o

Matthies, John -4b

Maximum yield, irriga-

tion 'J

Maury County, Tennessee. .dUg

Mayo. Prof. N. S., bloat HO

McEathron, George E., re-
port 301

McNeil, E. W., succeeds in

West Virginia 31 ^

Meadow fescue and alfalfa

compared ^-•-

Fescue and alfalfa

yields --'■

Meal, Prof. Cottrell's opin-
ion 1"^-*

Superior to hay 184

Sown with seed 50

Meat production in South. 14
Medicago dentictiJata, bac-
teria 60

foliata ^\

" media '^

" saliva 4

Medicine Hat, yield 14

Medick, black, an adulter-

ant 3o

Medicks, fifty species ^0

Meeting at Mr. Worker's., lb

Melilotus, bacteria on OU

Merrill, Prof. L. A., fed

horses 1'^^

On cuttings 1-^

Mexican fields, old i>

Mexico, alfalfa introduced

in .....; 2

Alfllaria for ;^g

Growing -44

Michigan, experiments ^0»

PAGE

Middlesex County, New

Jersey 2S1

Middlings, food value 132

Milk, alfalfa in making. . .14-2

Balanced ration 135

Cost of gallon 150

Flow increased 152

tests 1^3

The marketable product

, .^ 147

Value an acre 144

Yield increased 146

Yield, pasture and soil-
ing 123

Miller, Henry, experiments

238

Miller, Prof. M. F., report. 270

Millet, alfalfa sown with.. 51

And alfalfa compared...

146, 148

As preparatory crop 52

Before reseeding 72

Best to precede alfalfa.. 49
Between potatoes and al-

foX^a, 48

Fed with alfalfa Ao'J?-

Feed value 131, 14-3

Good to precede g'^

Protein value 133

Minimum water to apply. .77

Minnesota, experiments -OJ

Field, old J'

Seed for j-l

Spring sowing 5o

Time to sow 4 j

Yield in j^

Missouri, alfalfa in 10

Experiments -j.^

Fall sowing ^3

Moisture absorbed by straw

Conserve before seed-
ing 47

Robbed by nurse crop.. o»
Molasses, adulterated with

With alfalfa 185

Mold, prevent in stacks... 00

Moldy seed ^7

Monmouth County, New

Jersey 28^

Montana, experiments 271

Pasturing sheep 11*

Seed 29

Sheep fattening 20d

33^

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE
Moore, Dr. G. T., breeds

bacteria 198

Moore, Prof. R. A., report. 311
Morg-an, Prof. H. A., re-
port 302

Mortgage lifter 11

Mow, fires . . . . » 95

Storing 95

Mower not favored for seed

harvest 90

Mowing-, early 21

Por yellow leaf 67

Improves stand 67

In wet season 68

May be wrong 68

Mulch not 'needed 68

"Musts" 225

National Hay Association

g'rades 106

Neale, Dr. Arthur F., re-
port 248

Nebraska, alfalmo 185

Alfllaria for 228

Comparative yields 21

Curing 87

Experiments 273

Fall sowing 53

Feed tests 139

Hog feeding test 159

Hopper dozer 216

Lamb feeding 172

Lands, values increased. 204

Profit 22, 23, 25

Sand hills 15, 17

Seed 29

Sheep fattened 171, 205

Soiling 123

Spring sowing 54

Stock feeding 103

Work horses fed 166

'Nehrasha Farmer, on cut-
ting 69

Nebraska Farmer, various

fields 148

Nelson, J. P., report 282

Nematodes in soil 62

Nevada, alfalfa in 14

Alfalfa, on sagebrush

land 15

Deserts, alfalfa succeeds

in 17

New Brunswick, alfalfa un-
known In 15

New England, cutting 89

Seed for 29

PAGE
New England, Continued

Soiling 124

Success 311

New Hampshire, experi-
ments 279

New Jersey, experiments. . .280

Hay composition 76

Milk test 143

Feed values 132

Plant food to acre 192

Seed for 29

Yields of clover 20

New Mexico, alfllaria for.. 228
Experiments 283

New Milford, Connecticut. .248

Seed, new preferred 30

New York, alfalfa intro-
duced 3

Alfalfa success 17

Dairymen claim profits.. 144

Experiments 287

Lands improved 26

Old field 9

Seed for 29

Soiling advisable 124

New York Station fodder
crops 126

Newman, Prof. C. L., re-
port 299

Nitro-cultures 249

Nitrogen from roots 10

From soil 52

Gathered 190, 192

Gathered by cowpeas... 49

Not needed 10

Old plants need none..,. 60
Robbed by nurse crop... 58

Specially needed 65

Sustains bacteria 60

Nobbe, discovery of bac-
teria 197

Nodules formed 59

North Carolina, experi-
ments 289

North Dakota, experiments

286

Turkestan alfalfa 8

Nova Scotia, alfalfa un-
known 15

Nurse crop, effects of cut-
ting alfalfa 59

Iowa 257

Or not? 58

Nutrient values, various. . .145

Oat grass yields 21

INDEX

537

PAGE

Oat hay. analysis 127

And alfalfa com.pared. . .148

Feed value 145

Oat straw feed value 145

Protein value 133

Oats, sown with alfalfa. ... 51
And peas, feed value....

12(3. 132

As nurse crop 58

Before reseeding 72

Following alfalfa 193

Feed value 132

Foster weeds 59

Ohio bulletin, seed.... 33, 34

Experiments 290

Fall sowing 53

Farmer sows thickly 58

Horse raising 160

Pasturing lambs 114

Preliminary seeding 51

Requisites in growing. . .225

Seed for 29

Oil meal a.id alfalfa com-
pared 140

Oklahoma, cutting 89

Experiments 292

Pasturing 113

Seed 29

Yield 24

Olmstead and Olmstead,

report 273

Ontario, lamb feeding 173

Yield 14

Orchard, alfalfa in 223

Orchard-grass, yields 21

Feed value 145

Protein value 133

With alfalfa Ill

Oregon, experiments 295

Osborne County, Kansas... 260

Otterson. James, report 252

Otis, Prof. D. H., feeding

cows 144

Pasture for hogs 163

Overfeeding horses 166

Over stocking with hogs.. 161
Panicum capiUare, a weed... 69
Panicum sanguinale, a weed.. 68

Destroying 303

Parasites in purchased

.soil 62

Pasture, alfalfa in grass... 51
And soiling compared. . .123

Cattle 26.3

Grasses, feed value., 145

PAGE

Pasture, Continued

Horses 263

Lamb 48

Only when established. . 108

Pig 48

Poultry 180

Sheep 263

Stock 24

Uplands 116

Pasturing 107

Cattle 113

Horses 170

Previous to seeding 47

Rules for 11»>

When to stop 108

Pennsylvania, alfalfa intro-
duced 3

Bulletin, curing 83

Experiments 297

Seed for 29

Soiling advisable ....... 124

Perry, C. D., report 259

Physical effects, root

growth 6

Effects on soil 21

Phosphoric acid needed... 65

Pig, See Hog.

Pigs, death rate reduced.. 155

Pigweed in seed 35

Pinal County, Arizona 2.35

Pin-clover 227

Pittuck, Prof. B. C, report

297

Plantain in seed 41

Plants smother in wet land

Smothered under wind-
rows 84

Weak with nurse crops.. 58

Pliny praised alfalfa 1

Plow, character of tool.... 195
Plowing, deep, necessary.. 46

Difficult 195

For other crops 193

Importance of careful. .. 195

Proper 221

Recent not good 50

Sod, rate of 195

Stand renewed by 72

Plowings saved 21

Pods poorly filled 89

Pork, producing cheap.... 158

Potash specially needed... 65

Potatoes following alfalfa. 193

Precede alfalfa 48, 50

338

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Poultry thrive on 180

Prairie dogs, destroying. . .215

Injure alfalfa 212

Preparation, proper 220

Soil 46

Preparatory crops 49, 50

Presses for baling 104

Press drills favored 56

Prices received 22, 23

Profit reduced in feeding

cows 14G

Profits ....22, 23, 25, 144, 147

Protection, winter 108

From sun not needed... 58
Protein, abundance in al-
falfa 125

And carbohydrates not

interchangeable 13G

Digestible 12G

Excess in ration 137

Function of 134

Highest in first cutting.. 129

In clover 20, 21

Increased by irrigation.. 75

In early cuttings 81

In hay 70

Percentage in leaves 79

Values, various feeds.... 145

Provence, seed from 32

Prowers County, Colorado

215

Purgatives for bloat 122

Quebec, alfalfa in 15

Quicklime very caustic... 60

Rain, cutting after 82

Hay-caps 89

Rain-fall effect on hay. ... 75

Influence on seed 28

Raiscot, Alfred, report 271

Rake, Monarch 262

Side delivery 87

Time to start 84

Range of soils 16, 17

Rape, analysis 127

And alfalfa for hogs com-
pared 162

Ration, balanced 134

Balanced, explained 135

Cost of 150, 151

Money value 138

Unbalanced 134

Receipts 22, 23, 25

Recleaning seed, impor-
tance 32

PAGE

Recleaning to remove dod-
der 42

Redding, Prof. R. J., re-
port 250

Redtop and alfalfa com-
pared 148

Yields 21

Renewing growth 71

Rentals of land 26

Reseeding 65, {jii, 71, 72

Rhode Island, experiments

298

Rib grass in alfalfa seed. 41

Rice meal, food value 132

Richmond, Indiana 255

Rick, measuring for ton-
nage 229

Preferred 100

Roberts, Prof. H. F., adul-
terants 35

Robinson, J. W., raises

horses 165

Rome, alfalfa taken to.... 1

Roofing for hay sheds 99

Root growth 190

Growth, physical effect. . 6

System 6

Roots, deep 6

Nitrogen in soil from..., 10
Spindling, with nurse

crop 58

Thumb-sized 18

Value of 21, 191

Rot, root 212

Rotation necessary 194

Roughness supplied by al-
falfa 18

Various kinds to feed.... 145
Rural New-Yorker, article

quoted 17

Rutabagas, fodder value... 126

Rye bran, food value 132

Grass yields 21

Winter cover 48, 49

Sacramento River, growth. 241

Sagebrush land for 252

Land, new alfalfa on.... 15

Sales 22, 23

Salt River, irrigation 230

Salt in storing hay 100

San Mateo County, Califor-
nia 238

San Miguel County, New
Mexico 285

INDEX

339

PAGE

Sand hills, Nebraska, al^-

falfa succeeds 15, 17

Scott Bros., yield 22, 23

Screened alfalfa seed rec-
ommended 30

Scrub-oak land for 288

Seed, adulterated 33

Analysis 33

Bed, securing a fine 48

Bees insure fertile 175

Best costly 41

Best from Provence 32

Buckhorn in 41

Bur clover in 39

Bushel weight 31

Characteristics 37

Cheap 27. 41

Conditions influencing

germination 57

Cutting time 89

Damp 27

Dodder described 41

Dodder in 32

Exports and imports. ... 31

Failures, imported 30

Farmer to blame for

poor bought 41

First cutting not for b\)

For Illinois 29

For Iowa 2'J

For Ohio 29

For Pennsylvania 29

Formation, bees help in.l7<>

Good costly 29

Good, essential 27

Harvesting 89

Importance of pure 35

Impurities 32

Imported, Department of

Agriculture ^7

Increased by bees 175

Influences affecting 28

Injuries by storing 30

Inoculation not needed.. tU

Insects in 31

Introduced from Europe

Kansas 29

Kept several years 30

Kind to buy 20

Large and small 3S

Losses in stored 30

Moldy 27

Nebraska 29

Necessity of drying 90

PAGE

Seed, Continued

New preferred 30

Northern grown 28

Noxious 31

Oklahoma 29

Old 27

Plantain in 41

Pods, poorly filled 89

Poor, cause failures 221

Precautions in buying. . . 29

Pure 28

Purest in third cutting. . . 91

Quality of 27

Quantity sowed 21, 50

Raising, dry climate 28

Raising, humid climates

28, 92

Raising, Kansas 90

Removing infertile 01

Removing weed 91

Returns 22, 23

Rib grass in 41

Roberts on pure _. 35

Selection 27, 28

Sifting to remove dodder 42

Size of Bur clover bO

Size of 38

Storing 31

Substitution of trefoil 39

Test before buying 29

Third crop self sown.... 72

Third cutting for 91

Types of 37

Utah vs. imported 30

Value in Arizona 235

Vitality injured in stack. 90

Weed in alfalfa 31

Yield 91

Yield, Arizona 237

Seeding 44

After disking unneces-
sary 71

Alabama 281

Arizona 233

California 238

Colorado 244

Drill or broadcast 55

Fall 49

Importance of 79

July 6G

Kansas 258

Manure before G4

Pennsylvania 297

Preliminary 51

340

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

Seeding-, Continued

Soaking- soil before 73

Seeder, Cahoon 234

Gem 242

Seeders, various aG

Seeds dead 27

Fertile few 89

Seedsmen to blame for bad

seed 41

Selection of seed 27, 28

Self sowing- third crop 72

Self-binder, harvesting- with

In seed harvest 90

Selling- inoculated soil 61

Separator, J. I. Case 237

Separators in threshing

seed 91

Shed, hay 99

Sheep, dang-ers to, from

pasturing- 109, 113

Eat bindweed 219

Fort Collins 174

Losses from bloat 113

Old, kept off pasture 114

Shepperd, Prof. J. H., re-
port 289

Sifting- out dodder 42

Silage for cows lo2

Storing- as 101

Superior to hay 151

Silo, advantages of using.. 151

Cost of 152

For alfalfa 101

Siloing suggestions 102

Slings in stacking 94

Smead, Dr. D. C, horse

feeding 168

Smith, Prof. C. D., report.. 268
Smith, Prof. H. R., feed

test 139

Smothering under wind-
rows S4

In wet land 44

Snake River irrigation 251

Soaking soil before seed-
ing T3

Sod, breaking, for alfalfa.. 50

Hard to plow 105

Soil acid, unfavorable 44

Acidity determined 45

Adobe 230

And seeding 44

Baked, avoid 46

PAGE

Soil, Continued

Bur clover for Inoculat-
ing 60

Buying inoculated 60, 61

Buying not necessary.... 61

Buying infected 60

Buying, objections to.... 61
Character affects irriga-
tion 77

Conditions demanded.... 52

Conditions essential 46

Depleted, improved 16

Diseased, for inoculation. 62

For alfalfa 15

Gumbo 261

Hardpan 16. 18

Improved by alfalfa. .16, 190
Improvement due to al-
falfa 16

Inoculated for sale 61

Inoculated, quantity to

acre 61

Inoculation 59, 197

Inoculation, dangers of. . 62
Inoculation, meal or hay

for 63

Inoculation, not neces-

isary 63, 64

Listed 52

Never work wet 46

Not exhausted by alfalfa

Preparation 46, 297

Preparing, Arizona. 233, 236

Preparing, Colorado 243

Preparation, Washington

314

Restrictions, obsolete 44

Robbed of lime 44

Rocky 19

Sugar tree land 255

Waxy 52

Wet makes failures 44

Soiling 107, 122

Advised in East 124

And pasturing compared

123

Nebraska, 123

Pigs 124

Sorghum analysis 127

Bad to precede alfalfa.. 49

Consumes moisture 49

Fails to increase milk

flow 148

Fed with alfalfa 125

INDEX

341

PAGE
Sorgrhum, Continved

Feed value 14o

Hay, feed composition. . .13(j

Protein value 133

Soule, Prof. Andrew M., re-
port 311

South Africa, alfalfa in 15

South Carolina, experi-
ments in 299

Old field 9

South Dakota, experiments

300

South favors spring sow-
ing 52

Land values increased. .205

Sowing- time 47

Southern farms, self sup-
plied 14

Southern seed 28

Sowing dates 47

Fall 49, 53

Foul land 59

Spring disadvantages.... 53

Spring or fall? 52

Spring, on wheat ground

Points to remember 47

Time, South 47

Time, Central States 47

Sows, brood, Mississippi. . .155

Like alfalfa 154

Soy beans, feed value 145

Feed composition 137

Spain, alfalfa introduced.!, 2
Takes alfalfa to America

2
Spillman, Prof. W. J.,

opinion 9

Spontaneous eombustlon.
See Fire.

Spot, leaf 211

Spots, bare. In lodged nurse

crop 59

Restoring bare 71

Spotted leaf, mowing for.. 67
Spring or fall sowing?.... 52
Spring sowing, disadvan-
tages 53

Sowing favored 53

Sowing, importance of

early 58

Spurrier on alfalfa 3

Favors drills 07

Stack, curing in 90

Elevate bottom of 100

PAGE

Stack, Coni'xniied

Fires in 95

Protect top 100

Sweating in 9U

Stacks, condemned 99

Covering seed 90

Preventing mold in 90

Stacker, Landen 235

Stacking, conditions 100

Dry 93

In ricks 259

Losses from 98

Operations in 87

Precautions 90

Seed crop 89

Slings recommended 94

Stadmueller, F. H 248

Stand, ideal 57

Improving 6?

Increasing 51

Plowing to renew 72

Poor 27, 30, 54

Securing good 220

Thickening 72

With nurse crop 58

Starch in corn 22

Needed by bacteria 60

Steers pick up on alfalfa. . .12.5

Stellaria media, destroying. .297

Stems and leaves, food

value compared 82

Stewart, Prof. J. H., re-
port 310

'Stock, best way to market

alfalfa 137

Fed, Utah 25

Injure alfalfa 107

Keep off field 221

Stodder, J. F., bloat 112

Storer, Prof. F. H., hay-
caps 85, 8G

Storing 93

As silage 101

In barn 9.5

In evening 97

Seed 31

Stover and alfalfa com-
pared 140, 148

Fed. with alfalfa. . .125, 144
Protein value 133

Straw, feed value 145

Feeding value, Colorado

245

For stack feed 91

342

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE

straw, Continued

Money in 22, 23

On damp hay 97

Protein value 13'J

Value of 1)1. 240

Stubble, value of 21, 191

Stubbs, Dr. W. C, experi-
ments 265

Subsoil, toug-h, roots in... 18
Subsoillngr effects of alfalfa

IG, 194

Substitute for alfalfa 3G

Substitutes, recog-nizing . . . 40
Substitution of trefoil for

alfalfa 39

Success depends on cultiva-
tion 44

Typical in New York 17

Sugar and alfalfa 18.5

f^ug-ar beet dependent on

alfalfa 173

Sugrar beets, feed value....

120, 145

Protein value ...133

Sugar, losses in hay 81

Sun not greatest curing

agent 83

Swath, alfalfa lying in 84

Sweating before baling 103

In stack 90

Sweet clover in alfalfa

seed 32

Clover soil for inoculation

00, 202

Swine, See Hogs.

Swing seeder 50

Svnoground, N. O. P., re-
port 302

Syracuse, alfalfa near 17

Sysonbv eats alfalfa 107

Taliaferro, Prof. W. T. L.,

opinion 10

Tapping for bloat 119

Taproot 0

Taylor, Prof. Frederick W.,

report 279

Tedder, loss from using. . . 84

. Starting 84

Ten Eyck, Prof. A. M.,

burning weeds 09

Dimensions of ton 229

Hay 70

Hay composition 75

Silo U)2

Tennessee, experiments. .. .302

PAGE

Testing soil for acidity 45

Texas, alfalfa cut nine

times 10

Alfilaria for 228

Bulletin, feed stuffs 127

Curing 87

Cutting 89

Experiments 303

Yields 9

Thawing, harm from 50

Thickening stand 72

Thompson, \Y. O., report.. 275
Thorne, Prof. Charles E.,

report 290

Threshing made easy 90

Time between cuttings 24

To cut 89

To sow 47

Timothy and alfalfa com-
pared.. 21, 79, 127, 148, 222

Alfalfa sown with 51

Before alfalfa 50

Fodder value.. 120, 132, 145

Protein value 133

Ton, cubic feet in 229

Top-dressing annual 70

Benefit of 74

Trampling, effects of 59

Transportation, solving

problems 180

Trefoil seed in alfalfa 32

Yellow, adulterant 33

Yellow, in alfalfa 30

Yellow, beak on seed 39

Yellow, chief adulterant. 35
Ye'llow, distinguished ... 39
Yellow, size of seed .... 33
Yellow, to distinguish

seed 37

Yellow, recognizing seed. 39

Trocar for bloat 119

Tubercles formed 5^

Office of 197

Turkestan, alfalfa 7, 29

Alfalfa, North Dakota.. 8
Alfalfa, South Dakota... 300

Turnips, feed value 145

L^tah bulletin, nutrients ...131
Bulletin, various cut-
tings 128

Bulletin, irrigation 74

Bulletin, Utah County,

Utah 300

Co-operative woi-k 76

INDEX

343

PAGE
Utah, Confinttrd

Dates of cutting 7S

Experiments .304

Experiments, early cut-
ting 81

Fall sowing 53

Feeding test lo8

Hardy seed 92

Hay, composition 7(5

Ilorsef ceding K'.S

Reports profits 2"»

Seed 20

Seed not favored 92

Seed sown by Cottrell ... 80

Shoat raising 15(j

Water applied In 77

Value, leaves 79

Straw 91

Poorly cured hay 87

"Values received 25

Feed, various 145

Varieties 6

Alleged 28

Ventilation in hay shed ... 99
Vermont, experiments. .15, 309

Virginia, experiment 311

Vitality, injured in stack.. 90
Voorhees, Dr. E. B., re-
port 280

Wallace, Henry, spring

sowing 54

Wallaces' Farmer, spring

/sowing 54

Walla Walla County. Wash-
ington .307, 314, 315

Wallingford, Connecticut. .24S
Washing, soil, prevented... 48

AVashington, yield 10, 23

Experiments 314

Waste, feeding cows ....

144, 14<j, 1.52

Water, effect on hay com-
position 70

Cold, delays growth .... 73
Too much irrigation .... 72
Effects on composition of

hay 74, 75

Quantity to acre, Utah.. 77
Eighty feet below sur-
face 44

Amount required, Ari-
zona 23t

Watrous, Prof. F. L., al-
falfa in orchards 223

PAGE

Watson, Prof. George ^ ,

report 297

Watson ranch, horses fed

alfalfa IGO

Wayne County, Indiana 254

Weed seeds in alfalfa

32, 27, 31, 41

Seeds, removing 91

AJj^pds. burning CQ

'^Carried by soil ei3

Chief enemies 206

Failures due to 48

Fewer in third cutting. . 91

In hors^ pasture 110

^— Keeping down 47

Kill, before seeding . . . .206
Not prevented by nurse

crop 59

Poor farming causes ...200

Preventing 47

Repressed 40

Retarded by clipping ... 08

Subduing in July 00

Weevils in seed 31

Weight of bushel 31

West Virginia, experiments,

317

Wet feet, alfalfa can't

stand 18, 44, 212

Wetting delays curing 81

Wheat and alfalfa com-
pared 19, 25

Following alfalfa 193

Increasing yield 194

Straw, protein value 133

With alfalfa 51

Wheelbarrow seeder 50

Wheeler, Dr. H. J., report.. 293
Widtsoe, Prof. J. A., nu-
trients 131

Wilcox, Lute, quoted 73

Williams, C. H., pasturing

sheep 114

Wilson, Prof. James W., re-
port 300

Wing, Joseph E 290

Curing 83

Horse raising V\G

Pasturing lambs 114

Preliminary seeding .... 51

Windrows, curing in 87

Leaving hay in 84

Smothering under 81

Wisconsin, brood sows ....155

344

THE BOOK OF ALFALFA

PAGE
Wisconsin, Continued

Report 317

Time to sow 47

Wintering- sows irn^>

Yield I), 1:3

Witch-grass less bad than

crab grass 09

Woodford, J. E., hog rais-
ing 1()3

Work animals, alfalfa for. . 14
Worker's, grange meeting

at Mr 18

Worm, army 219

Worn-out soils restored ... IG
Wyoming, fertilizing value

of alfalfa 192

Experiments 322

Seed 29

Xerxes carried alfalfa to

Greece 1

Yield, acre ol2G

Affected by irrigation ... 77
Alfalfa and grass com-
pared 21

Arabian alfalfa 8

Arizona 234

Below sea level 15

Best when no nurse crop. 59
Butter, pasture and soil-

ing o if»

Compared with clov^er... 20

Corn and alfalfa 22

District of Columbia ... 14

1815 .3

Fodders, various 148

PAGE

Yield, Continued

Increased by irrigation . . 74

Indiana 24

Irrigations affect 77

Irrigated land 10, 23

Largest annual 128

liouisiana 14

Manitoba 14

Maximum under irriga-
tion 78

Medicine Hat 14

Milk increased 146

Minnesota 14

New Jersey 20

Not impaired by hogs... 108

Oklahoma 24

Ontario 14

Reduced by wrong cut-
ting 80

Seed 91

South Africa 15

Turkestan, North Da-
kota 8

Twelve tons under irriga-
tion 72

Washington 10

Wisconsin 23

Yields, big, poor land 65

Irrigation, Utah 78

Profitable 22, 23

Texas 9

Wisconsin 9, 23

Zoller, Isaac, report 287

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